Mega Man Iris
by ker-plop
Summary: Iris is rebuilt 100 years into the future, and a new Mega Man saga begins... EXTENDED VERSION FINISHED, NOW WITH CREDITS AND BRAVE STORY!
1. Rebirth

MEGA MAN IRIS

written by ker-plop

**CHAPTER 1**

**REBIRTH**

"Hey, would you watch it with that crate?!" the foreman yelled at the less-than-competent crane operator. "The prof wants it dentless!"

The workers were struggling to get a crate through the door of the Science Museum of Minnesota in Saint Paul, Minnesota. Professor Ross Smith, a 35 year-old natural genius, was expecting the package. At first he had been watching the workers from the main window and thinking about what was inside the crate. After thirty minutes of watching the workers bumble, however, he decided to go out into the snow and hurry things along.

"Gee, sir," answered the foreman when Smith asked what was up. "We can't get the crate in through the door."

"Perhaps you should take it off the crane," Smith said with a shake of his head.

"Uh... I suppose that would work," the foreman said as he scratched his chin embarassedly.

Smith sighed as he mounted the crate on a dolly and rolled it down to his lab himself. He knocked on the door, and his two partners Professors Charles Olson and Wallace Krein helped him get the crate through. They dropped it on the floor and Smith went to the closet to get a crowbar.

"Whoo! What a big crate," Krein said as he looked at the massive wooden container.

"I wonder what wonders await within?" said Olson. "You've been keeping us the the dark about this, Ross. What is it? A newly-discovered mummy? A Faberge Egg? Another ice man?"

"No...." Smith said, prying open the crate. "Something even better."

Krein and Olson looked into the crate and exchanged surprised glances. Pieces of an old robot were sandwiched into the layers of straw and packing peanuts. A beautiful, girl-faced head was engulfed in dark, brown hair, and a red beret hung loosely upon it. Her torso was suited with a rubber dress of blues, reds and yellows. The arms and legs couldn't be seen; they were probably beneath the other stuff.

Krein let out a low, long whistle. "Definitely worth the shipping fee," he said.

The scientists unpacked the robot and lay the pieces on their desks. "I don't know about this, Ross," Olson said as he lifted one of the arms dusted it off. "What are you planning to do with her?"

"What else does a robotologist do?" asked Smith. "I'm going to study her."

"But Ross," said Krein, "you're not planning on reactivating her, are you? History clearly states that this reploid, among others, was a Maverick, or at least didn't fancy to humans."

"I'm confident in my skills," Smith replied. "I've studied every aspect of robotology, and I've made a diagnostic program that will stop her from attacking us. Did we not learn to do such things?"

"Yeah," Olson muttered. "Several years too late... No one thought that the reploids that old botanist built would go nuts. Oh, sure, there were some people who were terrified of it, but they were the same people who had been worried about Y2K..."

"But Ross," Krein pressed. "DNA Resurrection is against the law! You could lose your position at the museum, and maybe something even worse, for doing this."

"I know," Smith agreed. "But I'm not reviving her through her DNA... I'm simply rebuilding her."

"Well, I suppose you know what you're doing," Krein said with a frown. "Just don't expect us to be alibis in court."

The three scientists studied how the reploid went together, then started welding the parts into place. 

* * *

The scientists spent hours in the lab assembling the mysterious reploid. They reattached some parts, removed others and replaced missing or bad pieces with new material.

"There," Smith said proudly as the scientists attached the final piece and stepped back to get a good look at the reploid. This particular reploid was the one who had taken a desperate gamble... The one that had a tragic love story that softened cold hearts... The one called Iris Thorne.

"She's just as beautiful as the history books said," Krein said.

"A true treasure," Olson agreed.

"All right, now," Smith said as he took a small visor/speaker set with a keyboard attached out of a drawer and plugged its wire into the back of the Iris's head. "I have to go into the reploid's DNA Soul and trigger her installation algorithms so I can integrate the fail-safe chip."

"What's the visor for?" Krein asked.

"The DNA Soul is an extremely complex series of nodes and programs," Smith explained. "This visor lets me navigate through them visually until I reach my destination. That's when I have to negotiate with the main CPU and get access."

"Ah," Krein replied. "Well, good luck, then..."

"Have a good time," Olson said. "We're going on lunch break."

"All right. See you later," Smith said as he strapped on the visor, adjusted the microphone accordingly and started hitting keys at a rapid speed. Within moments, he was virtually soaring through miles and miles of computer data. "Now, then..." he said as he sailed. "Where could that DNA Soul be?..."

Smith flew through terraquad after terraquad of data on senses, thought and intellect. "Boy, they sure know how to squirrel the important stuff away," Smith grumbled as he looked around. "Where the heck is it?"

After a few more minutes of searching around, Smith looked up and saw his goal; a large, glowing, purple sphere of energy hovered before him. "Ah, there it is!" he said as he floated up to it. "Now, I have to smooth-talk my way in..."

Smith put his hands on the sphere and looked inside; a nude young girl with flowing, dark hair sat in the middle of the object with her legs pulled up and her arms wrapped around them. Her eyes looked downcast and sad.

"That must be the heart of the DNA Soul," Smith said. "That part always takes on the reploid's physical appearance... Now..."

Smith pressed hard on the sphere. "Iris Thorne!" he shouted. "My name is Professor Ross Smith!"

The girl in the sphere didn't even glance at Ross. She just stared straight ahead with the same pitiful expression.

"I need you to let me in!" Smith called. "I have a new program to install into your systems! Please, I need your access codes!"

The girl didn't move.

"Iris, please!" Smith pleaded. "This program will help you! All your Maverick tendencies will disappear!"

Still no response came from the girl.

"If you let me install the program, all your misdirected anger and hatred will go away," Smith tried to explain. "You won't be a Maverick anymore!"

The girl remained stationary.

"I know you can hear me! Why don't you answer me?..." Smith asked. Just then, he frowned and looked away. "Are really so miserable?..." he sighed. "Have you fallen so low that you don't care about yourself anymore? I know your story, Iris; during the Repliforce war, you tried to stop your brother and the Maverick Hunter Zero from fighting... When Zero defeated Colonel, you felt so much anger that you had to kill Zero... but he killed you first, even though he loved you deeply... But after all that, you don't think that you deserve a second chance?..."

The girl's eyes shifted towards Smith.

"...Dammit, Iris!" Smith huffed. "I know we've only just met... but please, trust me!"

The girl lifted her head up until Smith and she were making eye contact, as if she were about to speak. Suddenly, her eyes widened in alarm.

"Huh?" Smith asked as he saw the girl's expression change. "What is it?"

An icy hand grabbed Smith's shoulder, whirled him around and pinned him to the sphere. Smith was face to face with a homicidal-looking, evil-eyed duplicate of the girl inside the sphere. "GET AWAY FROM HER!!!" the creature shrieked in a loud and violent voice as she drew her clawlike hand back to strike.

"Agh!" Smith yelled as he wrenched himself free of the monster's grasp and flew a distance away. The creature was faster, though; it lunged at Smith and knocked him back towards the sphere.

"YOU WILL NOT DO AWAY WITH ME!!!" the being snarled. "I'LL KILL YOU!!!"

The monster caught Smith in a choke and squeezed hard. Smith gagged and struggled, but the demon's grip held fast. Smith's struggles grew weaker and weaker.

The girl inside the sphere had been watching the whole fight with the same sad look that she had always had. Seeing this man, who was trying so hard to help her, being choked to death by the creature whom she herself despised was too much. Slowly, she got to her feet.

"NOW... YOU'LL DIE, JUST LIKE ALL THE OTHERS!!!..." the creature shrieked as it tightened its grip again. Smith was turning purple himself from oxygen loss.

Suddenly, everything began to shine. The creature looked up and screamed horribly. Smith managed to turn around enough to see the girl inside the sphere; she was standing erect, with her hair flowing out behind her. Her eyes were now filled with determination and courage. They suddenly flashed bright violet, and the sphere blew out like a super-powerful tidal wave. The horrible monster gave one last scream and melted away. Smith covered his eyes from the blast, and when all was silent again, took his hand away.

The girl was standing a bit below him and looking up at him with a thoughtful expression. "Professor Ross Smith..." she said in a soft, gentle voice.

"Iris..." Smith said.

Iris gave Smith a quiet smile and extended her hand. "...I will trust you," she concluded.

Smith blinked in surprise a few times, then grinned and took Iris's hand. Almost instantly he had the access codes. He quickly took off the visor, walked to Iris's front, removed her chest armor and peeled back the thin sub-armor beneath. Trying very hard to ignore the fleshy masses before him, Smith took a small scalpel and made a few quick incisions into the Reploid skin. he gently pulled it apart to reveal a small control panel. Quickly, Smith entered the access codes and a tiny CD slot slid out.

"Thanks, Iris," Smith said as he took the tiny CD that held his program and pushed it into the slot. The slot drew back into the control panel, and there were whirs and clicks. After about thirty seconds, Smith removed the CD, closed up the wound and replaced the armor. "That ought to do it," he grumbled.

"Ah, Smith, you're back," Olson said as Krein and he came back into the lab. "We brought you some root beer; that's your favorite, right?"

"Shh!" Ross shushed them. "Something is about to happen..."

The body on the table let out a soft moan. Everyone stepped back and held their breath as Iris slowly, ever so slowly, opened her eyes.


	2. A New Life

**CHAPTER 2**

**A NEW LIFE**

"Ohhh..." she groaned. "What... where..."

"Yes! It worked!" Smith exclaimed through clenched teeth. He walked to the desk and looked down on her. "Iris..." he said calmly. "Can you hear me?"

She slowly turned her head to face him. "You... You're... Professor... Smith?" she asked weakly.

"Yep," Smith said with a nod. "Welcome back to the land of the living."

"Urrgghhh... Where..." Iris moaned as she tried to sit up.

"You're in the Science Museum of Minnesota," Smith started as he tenderly helped Iris to a sitting up position. "These are my colleagues, Charles Olson and Wallace Krein."

"Nice to meet you," Olson said.

"Wow! We didn't really think Smith could do it," Krein admitted. "Welcome back!"

"What happened?" Iris asked as she got on her feet and slowly walked around the room. "The last thing I can remember was Zero screaming my name. I must have passed out..."

"What, don't you remember what I told you when I was inside your CPU?" Smith asked.

"Not all of it, I'm afraid..." Iris admitted.

"You've been dead for a hundred years," Olson restated. "We've just brought you back."

"A hundred years..." Iris said, shaking her head. "Well, I don't really know what to say besides... thank you."

"We brought you back so that you could live again," Olson said. "Such a nice reploid didn't deserve to perish in such a meaningless struggle."

"Oh, sure. Mr. Big Words over there," Smith muttered. "Anyway, Iris, you're welcome here. The world is very different now."

"Yeah, it is..." Iris said. "But... What purpose do I serve, other than being a relic from another time? I must be pretty out-of-date now..."

"Not as out-of-date as you might think," Krein said. "Hey, Snake! Our new friend is awake!"

The laboratory door opened and a robot wearing a green snake helmet and a white labcoat came in. "What was that, professor Krein?" he asked. Just then, he noticed Iris and his eyes widened. "Ah! You must be Iris!" he said as he extended his hand in friendship. "Glad to meet you!"

"Who're you?" asked Iris.

"Oh, sorry! My name's Snake Man," Snake Man replied. "I work here at the museum with the professors."

Iris looked Snake Man over. "You work at a museum?" she asked. "But you have so much armor, and even an arm cannon..."

"Yeah, I know," Snake Man replied as he lifted the gun. "The labcoat doesn't really hide the armor, does it? I was built by Dr. Wily and programmed chiefly for battle, but Professor Smith gave my program some new reploid parameters, so I can think and act independantly like yourself. And I must say, I much prefer cleaning test tubes and assembling dinosaur skeletons to fighting."

"Doctor... Wily?" asked Iris. "That name sounds familiar... Wasn't he....?"

"The demented scientist from 20XX," Smith started. "He was always overlooked by the leading officials in artificial intelligence, so he decided to conquer the world with his robots to prove his superiority. He built many dangerous robots, like Enker, Bass, and... others..."

"Others?..." Iris asked. Smith's description had left her hanging.

Smith shook his head. "Oh, don't worry; I'll tell you some other time. For now, relax and get yourself settled in to your new lifestyle."

"New lifestyle?" Iris asked.

"You didn't think the prof brought you back just to talk, did you?" Snake Man said with a grin. "You've got gazillions of opportunities now! You could travel the world, or climb mountains, or even just stay here at the museum and work with us."

"Hmmm..." Iris said as she rubbed her chin. "So much to think about... I'd like to take a little walk, if you don't mind..."

"Sure," Professor Smith replied. "I know... Why don't you follow Snake Man around on his job shift? You guys could get to know each other."

"Yeah, that would be nice," Snake Man said. "Today's the day I have to clean the omnitheater, and I could use a little help..."

"Well..." Iris said. "...All right. Lead the way, Snake Man."

"OK!" Professor Smith said. "You two enjoy yourselves. And Snake Man, bring Iris back here before you check out for the day, OK?"

"Got it, prof," Snake Man replied as Iris and he disappeared down the hall.

"I wonder how this is going to work out," Olson said.

"If her rapport with Snake Man and us is any indication, pretty well, I'd imagine," Krein answered.

Smith said nothing; he gazed at the empty doorway, lost in his own thoughts. 

* * *

"So, Snake Man," Iris said as the two reploids walked into the dinosaur exhibit. "What's your story?"

"My story?" Snake Man asked as he hopped onto a display of bone fragments, took out a magnifying glass and looked over each of them. "What's to know? I was created by Wily to destroy Mega Man, which I failed at miserably. Two hundred years later, Smith brings me back as his experiment in robotology. I've been working here ever since."

"But if you're a reploid now, you have free will, right?" Iris asked. "You're not just a programmed servant?"

"Nope," Snake Man answered. "I stay here because I like it here. I never got the chance to develop many hobbies back in the day, so now I'm doing all kinds of stuff! I've never been happier."

"So..." Iris said as she leaned on the metal guard and watched Snake Man dust off some split stegosaurus ribs. "Smith said that this was a different world from 21XX... What's been going on?"

"Reploids and humans live in harmony now," Snake Man explained. "The Reploids have their own history centers, schools, and holidays. And those rogue Reploids called Mavericks don't exist anymore!"

"Mavericks don't exist anymore?" Iris asked with surprised eyes.

"Nope," Snake Man replied. "At least, that's what I've been told... I've only been around for about two years, so I don't know everything..."

"A world with no Mavericks and the Reploids and humans coexist peacefully..." Iris repeated. "Amazing... It's almost paradise... But there's something missing..."

"What could be missing?" Snake Man asked as he hopped out of the display. "This place is perfect!"

"'Perfect' is an opinion," Iris said.

"...Well, you've got me there," Snake Man admitted embarrassedly. "But come on! Let me show you around the museum."

Snake Man took Iris all around the museum and showed her everything: the biology wing and its beautiful gardens; the technology wing and its realistic holograms and tools; the natural history wing with its fossils and petrified wood sculptures. After a few hours, Iris was well acquainted with the museum grounds.

"So, did you like the museum?" Snake Man asked as he hung up his labcoat in the briefing room.

"Yes, very much," Iris replied. "But I still don't know what to do with myself..."

"Hmmm..." Snake Man said as he scratched his chin. "Well, as far as your personal self, I can't really help. However, if you talk to Professor Smith, he could get you a job here at the museum."

"A job..." Iris said. "Something that doesn't involve violence and bloodshed?"

"Only when you have to clean up after some kid stabs himself on the tribal spear exhibit," Snake Man replied.

"Hmmm..." Iris replied.

"Ah, there you guys are," Professor Smith said as he came around a corner. "So, Iris, did you like the museum?"

"Yes, it's very nice," Iris replied. "I especially liked your exhibit on seashells."

"That's good," Smith said. "Have you, ah, decided on anything?"

"Well..." Iris said. "It's still too early for me to make any big decisions, but for now... Professor, do you have any jobs open here at the museum?"

"A job, eh?" Smith asked with a grin. "Well, I don't know personally, but I'll talk to the employment office tomorrow and see what strings I can pull."

"Tomorrow?" Iris asked.

"It's closing time now," Professor Smith replied as he hung his labcoat up next to Snake Man's. "We're all going home."

"What?" Iris asked. "But I don't have a place to stay!"

"Actually," Snake Man spoke up. "Why don't you come back to my place? We've got some extra room."

"Yes," Smith answered. "You guys are looking for another roommate, aren't you?"

"How about it, Iris?" Snake Man asked. "It doesn't have to be permanent; just until you get on your feet."

"Well..." Iris said hesitantly. "I wouldn't want to be a burden..."

"Forget about it," Snake Man said with a cheerful wave of his hand. "I know the others won't mind!"

"Others?..." Iris asked.

"I'll introduce you when we get there," Snake Man replied. "Come on; our apartment isn't far from here, but we've gotta catch a bus."

"Come back here with Snake Man tomorrow, Iris," Smith called as the Reploids left. "I'll tell you what I've found!" 

* * *

Noonvale Apartments was an apartment complex well-equipped for both humans and Reploids. Though both kinds used similar things, like showers and beds, there were toilets for humans and waste filters for Reploids.

"Here' s our place," Snake Man said as Iris and he walked up some stone steps to apartment GG202. "It's not much, but it's nice."

Iris shook her head. "Right now, any place will do, Snake Man," she said.

"Good," Snake Man replied. "Hmm... We're gonna have to double-up a room, and I suppose we'll need a new bed or a futon or something, but it'll be all right."

Snake Man opened the door to a sparsely-furnished room with brown carpeting that connected to two rooms and a kitchen. A few pots and pans soaked in the sink, but that was about it.

"Darren! Sharon!" Snake Man called. "I'm back!"

"Eh?" a girl's voice asked as foosteps could be heard tramping in from other rooms.

Two people emerged from the rooms. One was a cross-looking girl reploid dressed in red armor, and the other was a young man with straw-colored hair, a backwards baseball cap and a friendly smile.

"This is Iris Thorne," Snake Man said. "She's Smith's newest resurrectee, and she'll be staying here until she gets her bearings."

"Yeah, sure," The girl, apparently Sharon, said. "As long as she helps with the bills. Nice to meet ya, Iris; I'm Sharon."

"Hello," Iris said shyly as she shook Sharon's hand.

Darren was equally enthusiastic, and he tried to make a good impression. "HelloOOOOOOOWAAAAAGGGG!!!!!!" he yelled as he walked forward, tripped over his own feet and crashed face-first on Iris's midsection. He immediately scrambled up with a bright red face. "Oh, I'm so sorry! I'm such a klutz."

"Errr...It's OK. Pleased to meet you, too, Darren," Iris said with a smile. It was the first true smile she'd had in a long, long time.

They talked a while longer, and Iris learned a lot about Sharon and Darren. Darren was a rookie engineer who had a job at the museum adjusting the omnitheater machines. Sharon was a museum security guard who absolutely loved physical activity.

"So, we all work in the museum?" Iris asked.

"Yeah," Sharon replied. "Smith gave all of us jobs when we showed up. He's a real lifesaver."

"So, Iris," Darren said. "What would you like to do?"

"Actually..." Iris said as she stifled a yawn. "I'm pretty tired... I think I'd just like to go to bed."

"Yeah, you're right," Sharon said as she glanced at the clock. "11:30?! Jeez, it only feels like we just started talking! OK, well, you can hole up in my room until we get another bed."

"Thanks..." Iris said as she walked off, opened the nearest door and walked in.

"Well, I guess we'll have to double-up for a while," Darren said. "This won't affect you since you sleep in the living room, Snake Man, but..."

"It's OK," Snake Man replied. "I'll lend a hand. Well, goodnight, fellas..."

"Yeah, I'd better turn in, too," Darren said. "I heard that the bolts on the gyroscope need some extra work tomorrow, so I'd better get some sleep..."

Darren turned around and walked into his room. Sharon opened her door and walked in. "...Iris? Hey Iris, where are you?" she asked.

Darren sighed cheerfully as he walked into his room and began to disrobe. Just then, he glanced off to the side and gulped. Iris was curled up on his bed, fast asleep and snoring away. "Aww, geez," Darren grumbled. Not having the heart to wake her, he reached out and pulled the covers over her. She moaned and smiled in her sleep. Darren then grabbed his bean bag chair and dozed off. 

* * *

Weeks passed, and things settled down. Sharon pretty much became Iris's exercise instructor and gave her rigorous aerobic lessons to regain her stamina after her 100 year snooze. Professor Smith was able to wrangle her a job at the museum as an Omnitheater operator, which she enjoyed immensely. Still, though she was happy for the company of her new friends and life, she still felt that there was something missing... something important.

Six weeks after Iris's reactivation, it was a chilly night in the city. Since it was so cold, and because nobody wanted to drive up the energy bill, Darren made a fire in the apartment's hearth. "Nothing like a nice, crackling fire to warm up a cold night," Darren said as he sat down on the couch next to Iris, Snake Man and Sharon.

"Yeah," Sharon replied. "Ugh. It was so cold out there today that I think I caught a cold."

"The tail part of my helmet is all stiff," Snake Man said as he rubbed at the helmet. "I've gotta warm it up."

"Snake Man, that just DOESN'T look right," Darren grumbled. "Just throw a blanket over it."

"Hmmm..." Iris said as she sat back on the couch. "That's a nice fire, Darren... It's really relaxing..."

"Yeah, it is, isn't it?" Darren replied. "Nothin' to do now but sit back and enjoy the show."

There was a brief silence as everyone watched the fire.

"So, Iris," Sharon said. "What was your life like, back in the day?"

"Hmmm..." Iris sighed as she leaned further back. "It was nice... I had a lot of friends there..."

"Friends?" Snake Man asked. "Really? Anybody we'd know?"

"Probably..." Iris mumbled as her eyelids grew heavier. "I made a lot of friends at the Maverick Hunter base... There was Rudy and Koko and Terrence and Philip and... X... and... Zero..."

"X and Zero?" Darren asked. "The famous Maverick Hunters?"

"..." Iris said. Her eyes were completely closed now. "...Zero..." she mumbled again.

"What about Zero?" Sharon asked softly.

"That's... what's missing..." Iris said in a tired whisper. "Zero... My..."

"So, she misses her friends..." Snake Man said. "Poor Iris."

"Iris?" Darren asked. "Uh... I know you miss your friends... but... WE'RE your friends too, right?... Iris?..."

Iris was sound asleep.

"Maybe we'd better..." Sharon said as she motioned to the doors.

"Yeah..." Darren said. "Snake Man, you can stay in my room tonight."

As he often did when Iris fell asleep, Darren pulled a sheet over her and tiptoed away. 

* * *

"Zero... That's what's missing: Zero..."

That particular phrase repeated itself over and over in Iris's sleeping mind like a monk's mantra. As it flooded her skull, a feeling of choking heat and a stench of sulfur seeped in around her whole body. Growing uncomfortable with the atmosphere, Iris squirmed for a moment and then opened her eyes.

Iris stood in a rough, earthen tunnel. A hot, red light shone far ahead of her, almost beckoning to her. As she walked forwards, the temperature seemed to increase with every few steps. Iris wiped away the sweat from her forehead and kept walking.

She finally reached a pit of bubbling, steaming lava. A nearby rope bridge stretched from Iris's side to a wide, stone pillar in the middle of the pit. In the pillar's center stood a bright blue, cylindrical capsule.

"What... What's in there....?" Iris asked. "I... It looks familiar..."

With a loud swooping sound the capsule opened, and a familiar-looking blue reploid with a ruby on his helmet emerged. "Hello, Iris," he said.

"...X?!" Iris gulped as she remembered who the reploid was: Mega Man X, one of the strongest Maverick Hunters, and a good friend.

"It's good to see you, too," X said as he walked across the bridge and faced her. "Iris...." he said. "I sensed your reactivation and wanted to contact you."

"X, if you're OK..." Iris said as she looked around. "Zero... Is Zero still alive?"

"Well," X said as he looked around, as if he thought someone else was there. "Yes, he is."

"Oh, that's wonderful!" Iris said as she smiled happily. "Where is he? Can I see him?"

"The good news is that his remains are buried deep in this tunnel," X said as he motioned behind him; past the pit was another opening that led into darkness. "The bad news, though, is that once you find him, reviving him is impossible..."

"What?! Oh, no..." Iris said as she stifled a sniffle. "He... He's..."

"...Don't cry, I'm not finished," X said. "During the war against Sigma, our medical doctor came up with a syrum that would blunt the effects of the Sigma Virus. You need to attach one to Zero's systems before you reactivate him."

"A syrum?..." Iris asked with a puzzled look. "Why do I need that?"

"Iris, Zero may have never told you this before, but.... he was built by Dr. Wily," X sighed.

"THE Dr. Wily?!" Iris said as she became very startled. "But... But Zero was fighting for the Maverick Hunters..."

"Something happened between Sigma and Zero, and they changed personalities," X continued. "As long as Zero was alive, so was Sigma.The syrum will prevent the traces of Sigma Virus inside of Zero from reactivating. If you want to bring him back, you'll have to find that syrum."

"Where can I find the stuff?" Iris pleaded. "Please, X, tell me!"

"I'm not all that familiar with this new world," X said as he frowned. "If there's any syrum left, I'd bet that it's in reploid medical centers in the ruins of the older cities... And if you can't find any, you should look for the four types of computer chips that make it up."

"What are they?" Iris asked.

"The four pieces are labeled Alpha, Beta, Gamma and Omega, respectively," X said. "If you can find one of each type, it should be enough to reconstruct the syrum."

"So..." Iris said. "If I can find this syrum and put it on Zero, he'll be OK?"

"That's about the size of it," X replied.

"Thank you, X..." Iris said as she grabbed X and gave him a big hug.

"Well, you're awfully friendly, aren't you?" X chuckled.

Suddenly, all went black and Iris woke with a start. "Huh?... Wha?..." she asked as she sleepily looked around; it was well after 2:00 in the morning, and the fire was dying out in the hearth. "All just a dream..." she sighed as she fell back on the couch. "But... If what X said is true... Syrum... four chips... Zero... I'll talk to Professor Smith in the morning; he'll know what to do!" 

* * *

"Hey, Iris, what's up?" Sharon asked as Snake Man, Darren, Iris and she got off the bus and started walking towards the museum.

"Well, I had a strange dream last night," Iris replied. "I was hoping that maybe Professor Smith would have some insight."

"Good thought," Snake Man said. "The prof is a good fellow to talk to when you're bothered. I was feelin' kinda down during my first year, what with people still scared of me for bein' a Wily Bot, but Smith gave me some good advice and I pulled through."

"That's good," Iris answered. "I hope he can help me that way, too..."

Darren looked up and his eyes widened in alarm. "He can't help you if he's got the pulp beaten out of him!" he gulped. "Look!!!"

Everyone looked up ahead and gasped. The science museum was a mess; windows were shattered, exhibits were smashed and patrons were fleeing every which way.

"Good Lord!" Sharon exclaimed. "What's goin' on?!"

A green airplane flew over the museum with a monstrous roar, and several reploids leaped out with chains and tazers. They immediately ran into the museum with their weapons swinging.

"Mavericks!" Snake Man cried. "Come on, we've gotta go help everyone!"

"Mavericks?!" Iris asked. "But the Sigma Virus..."

"The virus only made reploids do bad for Sigma," Sharon growled. "Stopping it didn't stop troublemakers. Come on, let's kick some ass!"

Snake Man and Sharon ran into the museum, but Iris hesitated. "What's wrong, Iris?" Darren asked.

"I'd like to help, Darren, but I don't have any weapons," Iris admitted.

"Don't worry," Darren said. "Let's just get in there, find the professor and get him out!"

"All right," Iris said as she followed Darren through the broken door.

The outside of the museum had been a mess, but the inside was a total disaster. All the exhibits were either in pieces or being dismantled by the punk reploids. "This is awful!..." Iris exclaimed. "The scientists worked so hard on these!..."

"Never mind that," Darren said as he took Iris by the arm. "We've gotta find Professor Smith!"

Iris and Darren charged through the museum, trying hard not to draw any attention from the Mavericks. "Let's get to the downstairs labs," Darren said. "That's usually where Smith is at this time of day..."

"Darren, if we get cornered, what will we do?" Iris asked as Darren and she ran down a flight of steps.

"Let's worry about that when it happens," Darren grunted. "Oh, forget the stairs! We have to go faster!" He leaped onto the stair banister and slid down the rest of the way.

"Wait for me!" Iris cried as she clumsily mounted the banister backwards and on her stomach. All Darren saw before he was knocked to the floor was a speeding upturned skirt.

"Agh," Darren groaned.

"Oops," Iris said as she rolled off of Darren. "Sorry!"

"S'OK..." Darren grumbled as he got to his feet. "Come on! Let's go! Smith's lab is this way!"

The duo ran to the end of the hallway and reached a door labeled SMITH LAB. "Well, the door looks intact..." Darren said as he opened it. "Professor! Are you... Ulp!"

Smith lay on the floor with a big bruise on his forehead. In front of him stood a large, musclebound reploid with a big, red T painted on his face. He held a long, spiked bat, and he looked mean.

"Grrrr..." The reploid growled as he turned around and noticed Darren and Iris.

"Professor!!!" Iris cried. "What have you done to him?!"

"Big T's puttin' him in his place!" Big T laughed. "Same as he'll do to YOU!"

"Ahhh!" Darren exclaimed as Big T swung his club and shattered a metal closet. Hundreds of statistics books tumbled out and buried the clumsy teenager.

"Darren!" Iris cried.

"Hey... You're the one the boss is lookin' for!" Big T said as he looked Iris over. "OK, yer comin' with Big T!"

"No way!" Iris snapped. "Leave me alone!"

"An' whose gonna stop me?" Big T chortled. "You?!"

"You get out of here right now, or... or..." Iris grunted, aware that she was running out of threats.

"Looks like you need t'be taken down a notch," Big T grunted. "I bet the boss wouldn't mind if I brought you with only a few scratches, heh heh heh... HA!!!"

Before Iris could react, Big T's club had smashed her into the wall. "N'yaaaagh!" she cried as the pain sank in.

"Want some more?" Big T chuckled as he advanced and pulled his club back.

"Vuooo..." Iris groaned. "...Someone help me..."

Just then, the wall Iris was stuck in gave way and Iris tumbled into a small closet. "Argh!" she yelped as her bottom hit the floor. "Where am I? What's this?!"

Iris quickly looked around; the room seemed to be a storage space for more artifacts and things. "Maybe there's some kind of weapon in here..." she said as she quickly dug through the boxes and crates.

"Hey, sweetcheeks, are ya still kickin' in there?!" Big T laughed. "Come on out now, all civil an' pretty-like!"

"I've gotta find something... I've gotta help my friends..." Iris panted as she knocked boxes around. "...Ohhh, come on!!! Isn't there ANYTHING in here I can use?!"

Iris angrily kicked a box, and something small and cylindrical tumbled to the floor. When it hit the ground, a focused beam of green energy emerged from one side. "...Hmm?" Iris asked as she reached down and picked the object up. "...Wait... This is... a beam saber?..." she said as she looked the object over. "I've never used one of these before, but... it feels strangely familiar..."

"Hey, chicky!" Big T yelled from the other side. "If you ain't comin' out... I'M COMIN' IN!!!"

Big T saw a bright green wave come out of the hole, followed by a very angry-looking Iris. She landed in front of Big T and bared her weapon. "...Come on," she growled defiantly.

"GRAAAAAAHHHH!!!" Big T yelled as he charged Iris with his club.

"HEEEEEYAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!" Iris screamed as she ran at Big T with the beam sabre. The two reploids met, the room lit up bright green and a powerful SWOOSH was heard.

"Uh-uh-AAAAAAHHHH!!!" Big T screamed as he split in half and exploded; shrapnel flew every which way.

"Ooohhh..." Darren groaned as he dug himself out of the book pile and looked up. "...Woah!..." he exclaimed.

Iris stood in the center of the room, her beam saber sparking with energy and her face wearing a determined scowl. She straightened up, turned the saber off and looked over at Darren. "Darren, are you OK?" she asked.

"I... uh... uh... You... uh..." Darren gawked. "...What was THAT?!"

"I... I don't know," Iris said as she looked at the deactivated beam saber. "It's like something inside the blade gave me the courage to defeat him..."

"Urrrgghhh..." Professor Smith coughed as he started to come to.

"Professor!" Darren exclaimed as he ran over and helped Smith to his feet.

"Vuooo..." Smith said. "What an awful situation that was!... Those guys were..."

"Are you OK, Professor?" Iris asked.

"Iris..." Smith said as he looked at her strangely. "You could use that weapon?!"

"This?" Iris asked as she reactivated the beam saber.

"My God..." Smith said as his eyes lit up. "No one's ever been able to turn that saber on... How did you do it?"

"I don't know," Iris answered. "It came on by itself, really..."

"Hmm..." Smith said as he scratched his chin. "Very interesting..."

"Why?" Iris asked. "This is just a regular beam saber, isn't it?"

"Not at all," Smith answered. "That sword was once wielded by Zero, one of the strongest Maverick Hunters in history."

"Zero?!" Iris asked as she looked at the blade. "Zero used this? No wonder it felt so familiar..."

"Yeah!" Darren said. "You knew Zero, didn't you, Iris? I bet that blade responded to you because of your connection to him!"

"How very uncanny..." Smith said. "Well, now you have a weapon, at least..."

"Professor!" Snake Man said as Sharon and he came crashing into the room.

"We cleaned out the Mavericks," Sharon said with a smirk. "They didn't stand a chance! ...Woah, what happened in here?"

Iris looked around. "Uh..." she chuckled embarrassedly. "Have a seat; I'll tell you all about it, and about some other stuff..."

* * *

Iris explained about the beam saber to Sharon and Snake Man, and then talked about her dream. When she had finished, Smith sat back and scratched his chin. "Well, you've certainly livened up my day, Iris," he said. "Your dream practically sounds like a mission."

"I know..." Iris said. "And this beam saber responding to me..." She was silent for a moment, then looked at her friends with a new air of determination. "I'm going to find them," she said. "I'm going to go out there and find X and Zero."

"Are you serious?" Snake Man asked. "You're going off to find the strongest Maverick Hunters in existence?"

"You guys have been really great, but ever since I was brought back I've felt like there was something missing," Iris continued. "Now I understand what it is... Zero and X were the best friends I've ever had, and I want to make up for what I did before..." She stopped to stifle a blush. "Besides... Zero is..."

"Iris..." Darren said.

"I understand," Professor Smith answered. "Hey, if you do find them, I'll have the opportunity to study them and ask them all about themselves! Think of what we could learn!"

"So, that's what I'm going to do," Iris said. "I'm going out to find my friends!"

"And I'll come with you!" Smith said. "I know where all the ruins from your time are, plus I have a great car! What do you say?!"

"All right, Professor," Iris answered. "Let's go."

"Hey!!! You're leaving, just like that?" Sharon objected.

"Aren't you forgetting about someone?" Darren asked. "We're your friends too, you know. Let us come too!"

"I'm sorry, Darren," Iris said. "Judging from what happened just now, this could be very dangerous... I don't want you guys to get hurt on my account..."

"Snake Man, you'll hold the fort down here, won't you?" Smith asked Snake Man.

"Oh? Yeah, sure, prof!" Snake Man replied. "I'll get this placed fixed up in no time flat!"

"I can't believe this!" Sharon snapped. "Iris, I'm hurt! You're goin' off in search of two of your friends, and you're totally ditching three others!"

"Iris, please think it over..." Darren said. "Couldn't we be of any help?"

Iris gave her friends a kind smile. "It's sweet of you to offer, but I don't want any one else to be put at risk... I'll come back someday. Good-bye, Sharon... Darren."

"Well, come on," Smith said as he grabbed a knapsack off the counter and Iris and he walked out of the lab.

"Well, there she goes..." Darren said sadly.

Sharon gave Darren a sly grin. "You didn't just think I was going to give up right there, did you?" she asked.

"...What? You have a plan?" asked Darren.

"Oh, yeah," Sharon said. "We'll fax ourselves to their destination and meet them there!"

"...Fax ourselves?" Darren asked with a raised eyebrow. "Sharon, you can't fax people!"

"Why not?" Sharon asked. "They do it all the time on 'Star Trunk.'"

"Geez..." Darren muttered as he shook his head. Suddenly, he got an idea. "Wait... That's it! Come on, Sharon!" he said as he ran out the door.

"Darren! Wait up!" Sharon cried as she chased after the clumsy boy.

"Uh..." Snake Man, who was now alone in the room, said. "...See ya later, guys." He then quietly grabbed a broom and started sweeping.


	3. The Moth

**CHAPTER 3**

**THE MOTH**

The farther that Smith's beat-up General Motors 20X9 Zinger drove from Saint Paul, the more the landscape changed. The familiar brown earth and overcast sky melted into smoldering rock beneath a sickening lavender horizon. "Woah..." Iris said after a few hours. "Such destruction... What could have caused all of this?..."

"Some good ruins to start searching would be Old Detroit," Smith said as he checked an on-board map, then steered onto an interstate highway.

"Old Detroit?" Iris asked. "The last time I checked, there was only one Detroit..."

"That's true," Smith answered. "The residents who survived the Space Colony incident moved a few miles north and built New Detroit. Old Detroit's not much more than a bunch of smashed-in, underground car factories, but it's a good place to start."

"Space Colony Incident?" asked Iris. "What..."

"Oh, sorry," Smith apologized. "The Incident happened just a little while after X and Zero's scuffle with Repliforce. The Maverick leader, Sigma, posessed the Eurasia Space Colony and set it on a collision course with Earth. X and Zero destroyed it, but not before it spewed toxic pollution all over the planet. Most areas became uninhabitable... Some cities were able to survive, though. St. Paul was able to avoid destruction because of its weather power defenses."

"Sigma..." Iris growled. Then she looked back at Smith. "Weather power defenses?" she asked.

"The weather is controlled in St. Paul," Smith elaborated. "The city usually keeps things cold and gray year round, but we can whip up one hell of a storm... When the radioacive death cloud started our way, we blew it back the way it came with a blizzard."

"That's pretty neat... " said Iris.

"Yeah," Smith said. "Of course, the city can't control the systems any more because Ribosome bought the deed."

"Who?" Iris asked.

"Dr. Ribosome, a scientist businessman that runs a huge corporation," Smith explained with a frown. "It's called CONSTRICT, INC... It specializes in almost everything, and makes a bundle off other companies' failures; it even bought out Microware back in 2156. Plus, Ribosome's done some shady business deals that really make things lousy for some folks... I've also heard that he's researching Mavericks and the Sigma Virus, but no one knows why..."

"Ribosome, huh?" Iris asked as she frowned and sat back in her chair. "He doesn't sound very likeable..."

"Ribosome believes that it's better to be feared than loved," Smith grunted. "He has no desire to be popular."

"How do you know so much about Ribosome?" Iris asked.

"Urrgh," Smith said as he coughed and gave Iris a pained look. "...I took a job from him once... I've regretted it ever since. That man has no ethics... There's a fine line between doing something cruel and doing something in the name of science."

"What did he want you to do?" Iris asked.

Smith coughed again. "...Oh, it's not important," he said. "It's done now, and I've vowed never to take a job from him again..."

Iris looked out the window again. "No wonder they decided to move..." she said. "Who would want to live in such a messed-up environment?"

"The only things that live in Old Detroit now are rats and thieves," Smith replied. "There are plenty of ruins that nobody's ventured into yet... Maybe there's something we can use to create X's syrum."

"I hope so..." Iris sighed.

* * *

After a few more hours of driving, darkness began to fall. Smith pulled the car into a "Daffodil Inn" to spend the night.

"My eyes aren't that good in the dark," Smith said as Iris and he got out of the car. "Besides, I'm dead tired... Let me get my luggage from the back, and we'll check in..."

When Smith opened the car's trunk, he yelled in surprise and fell on his butt.

"Oh, thank God!" Darren wheezed as he got out. "I was suffocating!"

"Aww, crap, my left arm's asleep," Sharon growled as she clutched her dangling limb. "You couldn't have sprung for a bigger trunk, prof?"

"Sharon? Darren?" Iris asked. "But... What..."

"You didn't think we would take 'no' for an answer, did you, Iris?" Sharon chuckled.

"Iris, we're friends. We have to share the times, good and bad," Darren said as he helped Smith unload his luggage.

Darren had brought along plenty of money, so he paid for an extra room. He and Smith would sack out in one room, and Iris and Sharon took another one across the hall.

"I didn't think you were serious when you said you were going on this crazy trip..." Sharon said. "But, I should've known someone like you would want to find her friends..."

"Yes..." Iris answered as she undid the buttons on her shirt. "My friends are the most important things in the world to me."

"Yeah, I kinda figured that out the way you always talked about 'em..." Sharon said. Just then, she glanced over in Iris's direction and her eyes widened. "...Woah..." she said.

"What's wrong, Sharon?" Iris asked as she turned and faced Sharon.

"...They sure don't make reploids like they used to, huh?" Sharon said, staring bug-eyed at what was in front of her. "I can't even take my ARMOR off, let alone..."

"You can't?..." Iris asked. "That's a shame; I like being able to get out of those stuffy clothes once in a while."

"I can see why Zero liked you," Sharon said as she peeled off her armored boots to expose her stocking-covered feet.

"Uh... Thanks," Iris said as a blush crept over her face.

"So, uh, on that note... why did you try to kill him?" Sharon asked.

Iris hung her head. "...He killed my brother," she responded after a few seconds.

"Man, that's hard," Sharon said. "Having two people you care about at each other's throats... I couldn't imagine."

"Even though it was all a big misunderstanding, I think that I fought for the wrong side," Iris said as she removed her beret and slipped on a candy-pink nightgown. "I was a lot better off with the Maverick Hunters. Repliforce was an awful dump. They didn't even clean the mess halls."

"Mess halls? You guys can EAT?" Sharon asked.

"Yeah. The food is converted into energy particles, which provide us with a kind of 'blood.' It runs through our systems instead of oil. It's what keeps us running for a long time. Why? You've seen me eat before, Sharon."

"Yeah," Sharon said as she fell back onto her side of the bed. "But I thought you were a special case; I didn't know that all the 21XX reploids were that advanced..." Sharon stopped talking and yawned widely. "Oh... I'm all worn out from bein' stuck in that trunk... and... your nightgown's makin' me sleepy."

"My nightgown?" Iris asked as she looked down at it. "I've heard this color makes people really mellow and tired... that's why it's called 'passive pink,' I guess. Sharon?"

Sharon was fast asleep.

"Well, I guess that proves it," Iris chuckled. She fluffed her pillow, climbed into bed and dozed off.

Things had gone fairly well in the girls' room, but in the boys' room, life was a little less comfortable.

"Hey."

"What, Professor?"

"Were you just grinding your teeth?"

"No."

"Yes, you WERE."

"I do NOT grind my teeth."

Smith angrily turned on the lamp. "Well, SOMETHING was grinding together!"

"OK, OK! I'll shave my legs first thing in the morning," Darren muttered as he rolled over and went back to sleep.

Smith's face went green. "Sorry I asked," he mumbled.

* * *

The next day, Smith piloted the car the rest of the way to Old Detroit. Everybody got out of the car at a large tunnel-like hole. "Well, here it is," Professor Smith said as he looked up at the hole. "This road tunnel will take us underground and into the ruins."

"It doesn't look very inviting..." Darren gulped.

"Are entrances to ruins EVER inviting?" Sharon retorted.

Smith pulled out a few flashlights and offered them. Iris and Darren took one each, but Sharon declined.

"It's going to be really dark down there," Smith warned.

"Don't worry, prof," Sharon said. "I've got it covered." She rapped herself on the head and the crystal in her helmet cast a bright searchlight beam in front of her.

"Nice," Darren commented.

The foursome ventured into the dark opening, not knowing what awaited them on the other side.

"I never did care for ruins..." Iris gulped as they walked. "They're always so full of negative energy from the spirits of the people who died when it fell..."

"You can sense that stuff?" Smith asked.

"I don't know..." Iris answered. "But I just get really uncomfortable in these sorts of places..."

"This is the first time I've ever heard of a reploid getting the willies," Darren said. "Don't worry, Iris; we're all here to help."

"Hmm?" Sharon said as she switched her helmet light off for a moment. "It seems to be getting brighter up ahead..."

The group walked into a large cave with a domed-shape rock ceiling. There were a few holes in the ceiling, which allowed natural light to shine in and brighten things. All around were skeletons of old buildings, shredded cars and other messes.

"Old Detroit..." Smith said quietly.

"Amazing!" Darren said. "It's so well-preserved!"

"You can see almost everything..." Sharon added. "That big mess of metal with the smokestacks over there might be the old industrial district."

"It's so quiet, too..." Iris said as she glanced around. "Like a giant tomb..."

"Hmmm," Smith said. "We should split up so we don't draw too much attention; there might be bandits or something skulking around here. Sharon, you and I will check out that metal hunk. Darren, Iris, you go straight ahead together. If we find anything useful, we'll get back to the museum and observe it."

"What if we run into trouble, like you think that we might?" Iris asked.

"Simple," Smith said as he grinned. "Just scream. The echos will definitely reach the other group."

"Scream... Riiiight," Sharon said, sweatdropping.

"Great plan, prof," Darren grumbled.

"Thanks, I thought of it myself," Smith chuckled.

Everyone else shook their heads and sighed.

Smith and Sharon headed off towards the ravaged factory. "I guess we'll head straight down main street?" asked Darren. "Come on, let's- AGGH!" He tripped and landed face first in a puddle of machine oil.

"...This is going to be an interesting trip." Iris said as she stifled a giggle.

Iris and Darren walked through the ruined business district until they came to an old building decorated with car parts. "What's this place?" Darren asked as he tilted his head.

"I think this is part of the Henry Ford museum," Iris said as she looked at the building. "It was mostly a museum about cars and stuff, but it had a neat little area behind it called Greenfield Villaige. Let's go inside and look."

Iris and Darren walked though the old museum, but the interior was a total mess. "Ugh," Darren grunted as he picked his way over a huge chunk of scrap metal that had once been an ancient Model T. "This is what comes of having a museum full of old cars..."

"I don't think anyone could find anything in here..." Iris said as she looked around. "Let's try Greenfield."

"Do you think we'll have any better luck?" Darren asked.

"I don't know," Iris responded. "But being surrounded by all these shattered machines is putting me on edge..."

"Oh, yeah," Darren said as he looked around. "I totally forgot! OK, let's get out of here."

The two friends hiked through the scrap and out to the entrance to Greenfield Village. Much to their surprise, most of the village's houses and roads were almost perfectly preserved. "Amazing..." Iris said as she looked around. "I never thought such old houses could survive for so long!..."

"Maybe there's something in there," Darren suggested. "Let's take a look."

Iris and Darren walked through the quaint little ghost village, stopping every once in a while to admire the buildings. After they had passed the local ice cream shop, they came to a large area where the terrain had been flattened down, with massive pile of machine parts in the center. "Machine parts?" Iris asked. "What are these doing here?"

Darren knelt down and observed the pieces. "These look like they came off of an airplane... That would explain the shockwave-like effects in the land around us... I guess a plane crashed here during the Space Colony incident."

"That's terrible..." Iris said quietly. Just then, something shiny on the top of the pile caught her eye. "Hey, what's that!" she asked, pointing so fast that she struck Darren in the cheek.

"Ow!" Darren winced as he rubbed his bruised face.

"Sorry," Iris apologized.

Iris and Darren walked closer and saw a shiny hunk of computer chips. Iris picked it up and looked it over. "There're a lot of chips on this motherboard," she said.

Darren took a good look at the chips. "Hmmm... This must've been part of the airplane's guidance system..."

"Guidance?" Iris asked. "Well, that implies control to some extent... Maybe there's something we can use in there to make that syrum!"

"Good thinking, Iris," Darren said with a grin. "Let's get this back to Professor Smith.

"OK!" Iris said. "Let's head back the way we came..."

Darren and Iris started back the way they came, but a white, sticky rope flew in out of nowhere and encased a tree. "Whaaagh!" Darren cried as he leaped backwards and fell down. "What the heck!" Where did THAT come from!"

Iris heard the faint flapping of an animal's wing behind her. She turned around to see a reploid moth hovering behind them. The symbol of the Mavericks blazed brightly on his chest. "I think it was him," she said as she helped Darren up.

"Ha!" the moth sneered. "So, the boss was right... I'm so glad I followed that pathetic excuse for a professor here... I want two things: that motherboard, and yourself."

"What?..." Iris asked, frowning. "Who are you?"

"I've read about this guy... He's called Morph Moth!" Darren gulped as he clutched the motherboard tightly and hid behind Iris's back. "He mummifies his enemies with his Silk Shot weapon!"

"Well, you've been studying," Moth said. "Hand over the Maverick Hunter, or else!"

"No way!" Iris growled as she drew her beam saber. "I don't know what you want with me, but I won't be going quietly!"

"Very well," Morph Moth chuckled. "I like people who resist. I get to do things to them... Like THIS!"

Morph Moth put his hands together and fired a potent laser at Iris and Darren. The blast ground into the cobblestones in front of them and sent them flying backwards.

"Gyaaaahhh!" Iris yelled as she hit the floor.

"Come on, we've gotta get away from here!" Darren shouted as he grabbed Iris's arm and led her to a nearby abandoned building.

"I... What is this place?" Iris asked as she looked around at the strange gadgets and tools that were cluttered around the building.

"This is the workshop of Thomas Edison," Darren said as he looked around frantically. "C'mon, there's gotta be some tools in here somewhere..."

"What'd you bring us in here for?" Iris asked. "That moth's gonna be here any second!"

"Morph Moth stays airborne all the time," Darren said as he ripped desks open and plowed through their contents. "You'd never be able to land a blow with your saber... You'll need something else!"

"Little Hunters, little Hunters, let me come in!" Morph Moth shouted from outside. Another laser blast blew the lab's door to smithereens, and the Maverick stepped in. "Don't mind me. The door was open," he mused as he looked around for them.

"We can't hide forever!" Iris gulped as sweat trickled down her brow.

"We're not going to," Darren said as he turned around, triumphantly clutching a screwdriver and some of the chips from the motherboard. "Quick, hold your arm out!"

"Where are you?..." Morph Moth mused as he wandered through the lab, kicking lamps over and knocking huge holes in the walls.

"He's gonna collapse this place if he keeps doing that!" Iris cried.

"Hold still," Darren growled as he opened Iris's arm compartment and frantically started jamming the chips in. "I'm almost finished!..."

"AHA! There you are!" Morph Moth said as he leaped around the corner and confronted Iris and Darren. "Now... We can do this the easy way, or my way..."

"...Done!" Darren said as he slammed the compartment shut.

"Say goodbye!" Morph Moth shouted as he put his hands together and fired another rainbow laser.

"Haaaaaaahhhh!" Iris shrieked as she held out her arms to block the blast...

Suddenly, the arm that Darren had been messing with shifted from its normal look at a fearsome-looking arm cannon. It fired a powerful, violet blast and dissolved Morph Moth's laser. Iris was totally dumbfounded. "I... What... Huh!" she asked.

"Ladies and Mavericks, I give you the I-Buster!" Darren announced happily. "I thought it up before we left!"

"So, now I have a weapon like X's, and a weapon like Zero's..." Iris said as she smiled bravely. "OK!"

"So you've got a peashooter," Morph Moth growled. "Big deal!"

"Darren, take that motherboard and get out of here!" Iris commanded.

"But..." Darren started.

"Don't argue with me! Get those chips somewhere safe!" Iris said as she readied her new weapon again.

"...Be careful!" Darren said as he leaped out a window and ran a ways down the road.

Iris leaped into the air and fired more purple shots at Morph Moth, but if they did any damage, the Maverick hid it well. "HA! You think that will hurt me?" Morph Moth roared. "You'll be wrapped up tighter than Cleopatra when I'm done with you!"

Morph Moth once again joined his hands, and a flurry of lasers flew out in all directions. Iris tried to dodge the blasts, but one struck her in the shoulder. "Arrrgh!" she hissed as she sagged to the ground and grasped the wound tightly in a futile attempt to stop the bleeding.

Morph Moth hovered over her. "And now, I'm gonna do to you what your buddies did to me!" He pulled back, then charged right at her in a dive-bomb.

"(No... I can't die now!... I WON'T die now!...)" Iris thought as she watched Morph Moth close in. Suddenly, she felt a great surge of power welling up inside of her. She glanced at her cannon and saw that its nozzle was sparking with purple energy. "(Oh...)" she thought. "(I can make my shots stronger?...)"

"It's time to die!" Morph Moth snarled as he closed in. He got closer, closer, closer...

"You first!" Iris yelled as she aimed her cannon and sent a giant violet plasma beam right through Moth's face. He screamed, spun wildly out of control and crashed through the laboratory wall before exploding into shrapnel.

"I... I did it?..." Iris asked herself as the realization of her victory seeped in. "Yeah... I did it! I DID IT!" she cheered as she pumped her fist in joy. Suddenly, she felt a strange tingling sensation in her feet; she looked down to see that the colors of her outfit were changing from blue and red to pink and green. She glanced at her I-Buster and saw that it now displayed the words SILK SHOT.

"Silk Shot?..." she asked. "I got his weapon? That's always what happened with X and Zero..."

"Iris! Are you okay?" Sharon's voice boomed as Darren, Smith and she charged down to Iris's side.

"Darren came and got us," Smith explained. "He said something about a Maverick... Hey, are those new clothes?"

"I'm just fine; thanks for asking," Iris said before looking down at her dress. "Morph Moth is gone... This happened when I defeated him."

"Man, those sure are some nice threads," Darren said with a smile. "I think that you acquired his DNA data. Now you've got both your own weapon and his! Isn't that cool!"

"Wonderful!" Smith exclaimed. "I had no idea that reploids besides X and Zero could do that!"

"I couldn't have done any of it without Darren's help," Iris said as she smiled warmly at Darren. "Thanks, Darren!"

"Aww, go on," Darren chuckled as he blushed.

"...Oh!" Iris suddenly said. "Professor, what did you make of the motherboard that we found?"

Smith held the motherboard up and looked at it closely. "Hmm..." he said. "There are plenty of useable computer chips here... Maybe one of them could be used for the syrum. Let's take it back to the museum for more analysis."

"Does that mean we have to get back in the car!" Sharon grumbled.

"Yes," Smith said. "And you two won't have to stay in the trunk this time. Don't worry; we can grab some lunch on the way back."

"I should hope so," Darren pointed out. "It took us two days to get here, anyway!"

The four friends turned and headed for the ruins exit. As they walked, Iris turned to Darren. "Thanks again, Darren," she said. "I had no idea that you were such a quick engineer."

"Oh," Darren chuckled. "I'm a klutz of many talents."

"Really?" Iris asked. "What can you do?"

"I dabble in several things, really," Darren said. "Engineering, programming, anatomy, medicine... Plus I can armfart the song 'People.' Wanna hear it?"

"Ummm..." Iris gulped. "...No thanks."

"I can burp the alphabet!" Darren pressed.

"I'd have to hear it to believe it," Iris said.

"OK, then!" Darren said as he took a deep breath and began belching. "(BLURP)A! (BLEEB)B! (BRAAAP)C!"

"You HAD to get him started," Sharon grumbled.

"Sorry," Iris muttered with a sweatdrop.


	4. Phantoms In The Frost

**CHAPTER 4**

**PHANTOMS IN THE FROST**

A few days later, Professors Smith, Olson and Krein ran a barrage of tests on the chips. "Hmmm," Olson said as he eyed the piece through a microscope. "These chips are very old, and most of them are totally broken... I'm afraid that we can't use any of these..."

"So, our first mission was botched, huh?" Sharon grunted. "Dammit!"

"Whoops! Spoke too soon, professor," Krein said as he looked over a particular chip with a magnifying glass. "Iris, what did you say that those four chips had on them?"

"Let's see..." Iris said as she scratched her chin in thought. "Oh! X said that the chips were labeled Alpha, Beta, Gamma and Omega."

"Well, then we're in luck," Krein said as he handed the glass to Iris. "Take a look! This chip has the Greek symbol 'Beta' on it. It could be what we're looking for!"

"All right!" Darren said. "So we DID find something good!"

"Well, besides your super-quick handyman skills," Iris reminded Darren as she produced her I-Buster.

"Wow!" Sharon exclaimed. "Darren made you that! Darren! You can't even take three steps without tripping over your own feet! How did you ever pull it off?"

"Ummm, errr..." Darren said as he looked away.

"So, what's next?" Snake Man asked as he looked in. "Sorry, but I overheard your conversation."

"Now that we've searched a ruin, we can cross it off," Smith said as he pulled out a map titled 'Ancient Ruins Of The Modern World,' located Detroit and put a big, red X through it with a magic marker. "Now, where to go now..."

"Hmmm..." Sharon said as she perused the map. Her eyes landed on a small mark in the northern part of Russia. "Hey! The Repliforce Base in Siberia! That would be a neat place to look!"

"Siberia?" Iris asked. "Isn't that one of the coldest places in the world?"

"I'll be fine," Sharon boasted. "But, uh, you guys might wanna get some mukluks or something."

"As arrogant as Sharon's being, maybe going to the base would be a good idea," Smith said.

"I'm not being arrogant!" Sharon huffed. "I'm a fire-type reploid! I'm stating a fact!"

"It's not very nice to boast, Sharon," Darren said.

"Oh, yeah?" Sharon chuckled. "Well, at least I've got something to boast about!"

"N'grrr..." Darren growled.

"Calm down, guys," Iris pleaded. "Look, let's go back to the apartment and pack. It would probably be better than being stowaways, wouldn't it?"

"I like the way you think, Iris," Sharon said. "C'mon, let's go!"

As the three friends left the museum, Iris turned and saw Darren shuffling along behind them, looking rather depressed. "Hey, Darren, are you OK?" she asked.

"Hmm?" Darren asked. "Oh, um, it's nothing."

"Are you sure?" Iris asked. "I know Sharon said some pretty harsh things back there..."

"Oh, don't worry about her," Darren chuckled. "That's just what she does. It's all in fun."

"Well, OK..." Iris said with a smile. "Come on, or we'll miss the bus!"

"Right behind you, Iris," Darren replied as he picked up his pace.

* * *

Back at the apartment, Iris, Sharon and Darren threw assorted items into backpacks in preparation for their trip.

"Yeah, this'll be an interesting trip," Sharon said as she stuffed a coffee mug into her pack. She glanced over at Darren, who was busy stuffing plenty of warm clothes into his knapsack. "Hey, Darren, are you OK?" she asked. "You haven't said a word for hours."

"...Sharon," Darren said after a pause. "...Do you like Iris?"

"Yeah," Sharon answered. "She's really something! Loads of anecdotes, plenty of spunk, she can take her clothes off..."

Darren's eyes widened. "She can!" he asked

"Why do you want to know? Do YOU like her?" Sharon asked as she eyed her friend slyly.

"Well, uh..." Darren muttered as he blushed and looked away.

"Don't worry about it. Don't get your hopes up, though; her heart belongs to Zero," Sharon said.

"Are you suggesting!..." Darren demanded.

"You sound like you're going to," Sharon muttered.

"(Sigh) Well, you'd know me, Sharon. I mean, I've been living with you for how long?" Darren asked.

"Five years," Sharon answered.

"Yeah... You probably know what I'd do even more than me." Darren emitted a deep sigh and glanced down at his hand, upon which a shiny gold ring sat. "Tara, why'd you leave me?..." he asked quietly.

"Heh?..." Sharon asked, but Darren didn't look like he was disclosing any other information. She shrugged and went back to packing.

* * *

The following afternoon, Iris, Darren and Sharon arrived back at the museum. "Hey again, guys," Snake Man greeted them at the door. "Professor Smith's waiting for you in his room."

The three friends hurried down to Smith's laboratory, where they found the unshaven doctor wearing a thick coat and strapping on a large, green backpack. "Hey, guys!" he said. "What're you waiting for? Get your jackets on!"

"Get our jackets on?" Iris asked. "What do you mean?"

"We're going to Russia, aren't we?" Smith asked. "So come on!"

"But aren't we taking a plane or something?" Darren asked.

"No," Smith said. "That would take way too long! We've got a transporter in the back. It can send us anywhere on the planet in a matter of seconds, so it'll be a flash to get there!"

"Wait a minute!" Darren objected. "If we had that transporter, why'd we have to drive all the way to Detroit!"

"My car's old," Smith answered. "I need to drive it once in a while to keep it going."

"Oh, boy..." Sharon grumbled. Darren shook his head in exasperation.

"Now, come on," Smith said as he opened a door in the back of the room. "It's in here."

The party walked into a small room with a large, blue capsule with a monitor and keyboard hooked up on the end. Smith walked to the keyboard and hit several buttons. "I've set the coordinates so that we'll land in the city of Tynda," he said. "That's a town on the edge of Siberia, and the closest one to the Repliforce base."

"Repliforce base..." Iris sighed. "Well, I guess I was bound to go there sooner or later."

"We can only send one person at a time, so go single file, and move out of the way as soon as you get there," Smith instructed. "We don't want anybody getting stuck together, now. Who's up first?"

"I'll go," Sharon said as she stepped into the machine. "Let 'er rip, doc!"

"The accurate term is 'prof,'" Smith grumbled as he pressed a button and Sharon disappeared in a flash. "Next!"

"I'll be next," Darren said as he stepped forward. Unfortunately, he stumbled, fell and banged face-first into the teleporter.

"Agh!" Iris exclaimed as she ran and helped Darren up. "Are you OK!"

"Oogh, could've been worse," Darren grunted as he rubbed his sore nose. "C'mon, let's get moving."

In another flash, Darren was gone. "You're next, Iris," Smith said. "Get on in!"

"All right..." Iris started as she walked towards the pot. At the last moment, she stopped and looked down at the machine.

"...What's wrong?" Smith asked.

"Oh, ummm..." Iris hesitated. "I've never been, uh, faxed anywhere before..."

Smith smiled. "Don't worry about it; you'll be just fine."

"Well, if you say so, professor..." Iris said as she stepped into the machine. "Here we go!"

Iris felt her body begin to drift apart as Professor Smith hit the button. It wasn't a horrible, gut-ripping feeling like some horror movies would lead us to believe, but a sense of dissolving into soft, falling snowflakes. After a brief moment of this feeling, it grew very cold and dark. She blinked and found herself standing knee-deep in snow in the dead of night, with only some gentle lights off to the west as a sign of civilization. She hugged herself for warmth; it was absolutely freezing.

"Hey, Iris!" Sharon called from nearby. "Glad you could make it!"

"You might want to get out of the way," Darren added as he appeared a few feet away.

"Hmm?" Iris asked as she moved about five feet away from her landing point. Almost as soon as she did, Professor Smith appeared and fell face-first into the snow.

"Whoo! It worked! Great!" he exclaimed as he got up and spat white fluff everywhere. "Fantastic! OK, let's find that base!"

"Hey, professor," Sharon said as she looked around. "Don't ya notice anything, uh, different? What's wrong with this picture?"

Smith blinked for a moment and then smacked himself. "Aww, geez! I completely forgot about the time difference!" he yelled.

"Time difference?" Darren asked. "No wonder!"

"This part of Russia is about eight hours ahead of Minnesota," Iris said as she made some quick calculations. "It was about 3:00 back at the museum, which means it's around 11:00 here..."

"We really shouldn't go wandering out in the snow in the dark," Darren said. "I can barely see in front of me! Who knows what's out there?"

"Good point, D," Sharon said. "Let's find a hotel or something! I was lookin' to turn in early anyway!"

"I suppose it wouldn't hurt," Smith admitted. "But don't worry, fellas! I know someone in Tynda who can help. Come on!"

Smith and the others trudged towards the western lights, but hiking through the knee-deep snow made the going slow, and the cold winds didn't help either. "Why couldn't you have suggested a different ruin, like one in Malibu!" Darren grunted to Sharon.

"OK, OK, so it's not a winter wonderland!" Sharon grumbled. "Sheesh... Suck it up!"

Suddenly, Darren stumbled and fell, catching Iris in the back and taking her down into the snow with him. "Vuooo..." he groaned as he got up. "I'm sorry, Iris... Are you all right?" he asked.

Iris pulled herself up; her face was covered with heavy amounts of snow. "...Ho, ho, ho," she chuckled halfheartedly.

* * *

Iris and the party walked into snowy city of Tynda. At 11:00, not much was happening; the town square was empty, and all the stores were locked up for the night.

"I thought that most cities were destroyed during the Space Colony Incident," Iris pointed out.

"They were," Darren said. "But in 2205, President Yeltsin IV found a hidden mine where the ancient Czars hid treasures that they had stolen in wars. He gave them back to their rightful countries, who in turn sent teachers and materials to help rebuild Russia. Tynda's in pretty good shape, considering the rest of the world."

"Economy? You mean that cars or machines are produced here?" Iris asked.

"No, something even more valuable; toenail clippers!" Darren said. "They're so useful that practically everyone owns a Tynda-made toenail clipper these days!" He pulled an ornately-decorated toenail clipper out and showed it to Iris.

"Onion domes, icons and Faberge Eggs?" Iris muttered. "Sheesh, what a way to push a stereotype."

"It worked for white rappers," Darren protested.

"Well, you have me there," Iris admitted.

"Come along, guys," Professor Smith said as he stopped in front of a large laboratory. "I have a robotologist friend who lives here, and I'm sure he'll put us up for the night."

"Another robotologist?" Iris asked. "What's his name?"

"Doctor Otto Donnerstag," Smith said. "This man is a genius; he worked to design your fail-safe program with me. I'm sure he'll be glad to meet you!"

"I hope so," Darren said as he knocked on the door. "It's freezing out here!"

The door opened to reveal a stout man with a black, pointed beard, wide, boxy glasses and a mess of frizzy, blackhair. A grumpy glower was plastered across his light crimson face. "_Keine Verkäufer!_ No salesmen!" he barked at Darren in a thick German accent. "_Gott in Himmel_, have you any idea of what time it is!" With that, he slammed the door.

"Aye yai yai..." Darren wheezed as he backed away from the door.

"Glad to meet us, eh?" Sharon grumbled.

"Let's try again," Smith said as he knocked on the wooden door. The bearded man opened it again with the same scowl.

"Are you deaf!" the man asked angrily. "For the last time-"

"Otto, calm down," Smith said. "Don't you remember me? It's Ross! We worked on a project together, remember?"

Upon hearing this, Donnerstag's attitude changed immensely. "...Ahh, _Herr Smith!_ How good it is to see you! Please, please, come in out of the cold! And bring your friends, too!"

Smith, Sharon and Iris walked in. Darren started in when Donnerstag stopped him. "How many times must I tell you!" he snapped. "Begone!"

"No, no, he's with us," Sharon objected.

Donnerstag blinked a few times, then sighed. "_Ach_, fine, come on..." he grumbled. Darren nervously walked in and stood behind everyone else.

"My, my, you certainly have changed since we worked together, Professor," Donnerstag laughed heartily. "You must tell me everything that you've been working on! Oh, but where are my manners? Your friends and I have not been introduced!" He turned to Iris and Sharon with a warm smile. "I am Doctor Otto Donnerstog, founder of the Tynda School of Robotology and renowned scientist!"

"Nice to meet you. I'm Sharon Doherty," Sharon said as she shook Donnerstag's hand.

"Ah, very nice, very nice," Donnerstag said. As he turned to Iris, his face lit up. "OH! Is this who I think it is!" he asked in disbelief.

Everyone looked at Iris. "Who, me?" she asked.

"_Ach du Lieber!_ It is Iris Thorne!" Donnerstag cried as he grabbed Iris and kissed her on both cheeks before shaking her hand so vigorously that her arm almost came off. "I have waited so long for a chance to meet a 22nd-century reploid!" he exclaimed.

"Well, um, I, uh..." Iris stammered as she went red.

Donnerstag glanced over at Darren and gave him a bored look. "And you are?..." he asked.

"I'm Darren Lucas," Darren said as he held out his hand. "Nice to meet you."

"Oh, hum.. yes, of course," Donnerstag said as he turned back to the others. "Well, where are my manners? Being out in the cold for so long... You must be half-frozen and _sehr Hunger haben_! I'll prepare some food for you!"

"Food?" Sharon asked as her eyes lit up. "Now that sounds good!"

"But you had a huge lunch..." Darren said.

"Hey, ya can't live on burgers alone," Sharon laughed. "Bring on the grub, Donny!"

"All right," Donnerstag said. "Let me call my assistant. I'm sure he'll be glad to meet you all as well. Frost Man! Some new friends!"

"Huh?" a deep voice boomed from the other room. Iris and company gulped in surprise as an eight-foot tall, icy robot lumbered into the room. "Oh! New people!" he laughed heartily. "Hullo! I'm Frost Man!"

"Frost Man?" Sharon asked. "Hey, isn't he a-"

"Yes," Smith answered. "Frost Man was built by Dr. Wily, but Donnerstag revived him with the fail-safe program, much Snake Man and Iris. You could say that it's a hobby to have a robot assistant."

"I am so glad to meet all of you!" Frost Man rumbled as he grabbed Iris, Sharon and Darren in a big, cold, group hug.

"Aiiigghhh!" Sharon gagged.

"D-d-don't mention it!" Iris chattered.

Frost Man dropped Iris and Sharon, but Darren held fast. "Uh, Darren, are you OK?" Sharon asked.

"Gugh," Darren grunted as he tried to shove away from Frost Man, but couldn't.

"Uh-oh," Frost Man said. "Looks like yer stuck to me. No problem. Just hold still!"

Frost Man grabbed Darren around the middle and pulled. After a sickening THUP sound, Darren was on the ground nursing his sore tongue.

"Ouch," Iris said. "Are you all right, Darren?"

"(Hack) Nehah helt hettah," Darren gagged as he rubbed the wounded piece.

"...Yes, he's very entertaining," Donnerstag chuckled. "_Jetzt_, Frost Man, let's get a meal ready for our guests!"

"OK, Doctor!" Frost Man answered. "Do you want I should make popsicles?"

"No, I think something warmer would be better," Donnerstag answered. "Go and some chicken heat up."

"Uh..." Frost Man gulped. "But Doctor, the oven doesn't like me. Every time I get near it, my hand melts off!"

"Oh, yes, I forgot," Donnerstag muttered. "Rotten 20th century appliances... Well, come along, everyone; it looks like I'll be doing the cooking."

* * *

Doctor Donnerstag and the others sat down to a leisurely midnight snack of chicken and popsicles. "Iris," Donnerstag said. "You must tell me! Why are you out here in Siberia at such a late hour?"

"Well, Dr. Donnerstag," Iris said. "I'm here to investigate the Siberian Repliforce base. I'm looking for some computer chips to build a syrum..."

"The Repliforce Base, hmm?" Donnerstag asked. "Well, that's quite a ways out into the field. It's too late tonight, but tomorrow I could lend you my snowspeeder so you could get out there quickly."

"A snowspeeder, huh?" Darren asked. "That sounds real swell, Doctor!"

"Umm... A snowspeeder?" Iris asked. "What's that?"

"A snowspeeder is a larger, faster snowmobile," Darren explained. "Think of it as a motorboat built for tundra."

"Excellent," Donnerstag answered with a raised eyebrow. "How did you ever guess that?"

"Well, I do have a degree in engineering," Darren admitted.

"Really?" Donnerstag said with mock interest. "Considering your apparel, I thought you were a grease monkey."

"N'ggrrrrgh," Darren grunted as he adjusted his backwards cap.

"Well, Otto," Professor Smith said as he put his fork down. "I suppose we'll come back tomorrow. We'll go and find an inn to stay at-"

"Nonsense!" Donnerstag said as he got up, too. "You will stay here tonight! Frost Man, prepare some beds right away!"

"Really?" Iris asked. "That's so nice of you!"

"Wow!" Sharon laughed. "A free meal AND a free room! This can't get much better!"

"Whoop-dee-doo..." Darren sighed as he walked over to a blue couch, sat down and stared at the floor.

"Before you rest, Professor Smith, I have something to show you!" Donnerstag said as he motioned towards a door. "Please, come along!"

"Well, OK," Smith answered as he followed his friend through the door.

"Well, those two hit it off pretty well," Iris chuckled. "But..." She glanced back at Darren, who was sitting on the couch and looking miserable. "Hey, Darren, are you OK?..." she asked as she sat down next to him.

"Man, where WERE his manners?" Sharon huffed as she sat down on the opposite side. "He was soft on Iris, but he sure gave you crap. Believe you me, I know what I'm talking about."

"Yeah," Darren grumbled. "About the 10,000th guy who's crushed my spirit into a hundred little bitty pieces."

"Is it really all that bad?" asked Iris. "You seem OK to me."

"You think I'm OK?" Darren asked sarcastically. "Bah! First of all, I didn't exactly have an ideal childhood. My mother died when I was three, leaving my father to take care of me. He was a gym teacher who was obsessed with physical activity. I wanted to stay home and read or build stuff, but he wanted me to be an athlete and pushed sports on me pretty fiercely. 'I'm not raisin' no wuss,' he always said. Ugh... But no matter how much I worked out, I was always a skinny klutz... I never won his favor or respect. Eventually I got into a fight at the school where he worked, and he just stood and watched. Do you want to know what he did?..."

"What?..." Iris asked quietly.

"He rooted for the other guy! 'Give 'im the what for!' he yelled. 'That'll teach 'im!'"

"What!" Sharon said as she frowned and shook her head. "What kind of a message does that send a kid, huh?"

"After that day, I had enough," Darren continued. "I complained about it to him, but instead of talking about it, he threw me out of the house! I had to live with a nearby aunt until I graduated. Then I went to college, but things didn't get any better. My aunt was the only person who ever called or sent money, and I never heard a word from dad... That is, until graduation day. I was all ready to receive my degree in engineering when he stomped into the auditorium, marched right up to the podium, ripped up my diploma and pummeled me in front of the whole school!"

"What! No!" Iris gasped. "Who would allow that kind of thing!"

"Well, not the school, fortunately," Darren chuckled halfheartedly. "'Daddy dearest' got thrown in jail for assault, and his fine paid for my hospital bill. After I got better, I learned that my aunt had passed away... I had no place to go. I finally was able to hitchhike to St. Paul, where I got a job at the Science Museum maintaining the exhibits. If it wasn't for Professor Smith and his friendly tutelage, I'd never have gotten as far in as I am. I made enough money to be able to rent apartment with Sharon and Snake Man... You know the rest."

"I'm sorry, Darren; I had no idea..." Iris said as she started to put her arm over his shoulder.

Darren gently took it off. "Please, don't," he said. "It's too much like my girlfriend."

"Girlfriend?" Sharon and Iris asked.

"Tara Slater. Met her at the college," Darren answered as he showed them his gold ring. "She was the only person who really cared for me outside of my aunt. Heh... If you wore glasses, you'd look exactly like her, Iris."

"...So why isn't she with you now?" asked Iris.

"Yeah, you never mentioned her to me," Sharon said.

"There was a Maverick attack about seven years ago," Darren said coldly. "She tried to help her family by getting into a mech and attacking it head-on, but..."

Iris couldn't help putting her arm over his shoulder. "I'm so sorry," was all she could say.

"Well..." Darren sighed. Suddenly, he perked up and smiled widely at Iris. "That's all in the past! Now I've got a great job and good buddies like you! What do I have to worry about?" he chuckled.

"Eh!" Iris asked, surprised by Darren's sudden change in attitude. "Well, uh..."

"Heh heh heh!" Darren laughed. "You have to look for the silver lining when there's a cloud; that's what I always say! Don't worry about me! I'm just fine!"

"Yeah, I shoulda known you wouldn't be in a funk for long," Sharon chuckled.

"Oh, boy..." Iris said as she shook her head and smiled.

"Hey!" Donnerstag's voice came from the other room. "All of you, _kommen sie hier_! I've got something to show you!"

Donnerstag led them into a dark room. "Smith and I were old working comrades," he explained. "We both dreamed of resurrecting old Reploids. I was the first to officially succeed, but I couldn't curb their vicious tendencies, so I joined the scientists working on the fail-safe program. Thanks the results we've had with Frost Man, Snake Man and you, though, now hopefully I can resurrect my own collection of Reploids!"

He flicked a light switch and everyone looked around in amazement. The room held 25 large capsules containing Reploids from Iris's time. Iris walked among the tubes and read some of the labels: STORM EAGLE; FLAME STAG; CYBER PEACOCK; VOLT CATFISH; WHEEL GATOR; TOXIC SEAHORSE; DR. DOPPLER; VILE.

"Wow," Sharon said as she rapped on the tubes. "These guys are old, but they're in great condition! You must've spent plenty getting them cleaned up."

"Wow," Darren said as he eyed the capsule controls. "I've never seen a holding chamber this advanced. It would take me years to build something like it!"

"These Reploids are all pretty small finds compared to the other ones still out in the ruins somewhere," Donnerstag admitted. "But I like them."

"You don't happen to have Repliforce's Colonel... or Zero, do you?" Iris asked hopefully.

Donnerstag gave Iris an odd look. "That's actually a good question," he said as he walked over to the Reploid named VILE. "When I found this one, its own control chip was gone, but another Reploid's control chip was implanted in it... Colonel's."

"Colonel's!" Iris exclaimed as her eyes widened. "May I see it? Please?..."

"Certainly," Donnerstag said as he opened the capsule, removed the chip from Vile's body and handed it to her.

"Hmm..." Sharon said. "The control chip stores a Reploid's personality and memories, so it's pretty valuable part. Why would someone switch 'em?"

"Oh, dear brother..." Iris whispered as she clutched the chip tightly. "I'm going to find him, and Zero, too..."

"Well, all this techno talk has made me pretty sleepy," Smith said as he stifled a yawn. "I'm goin' to bed. How about you guys?"

"Count me in," Sharon said. "That chicken's kickin' in about now... Vuoo..."

"I guess we should rest for tomorrow," Iris admitted. "All right."

"Doctor, I got the beds ready!" Frost Man said as he walked into the room.

"_Wunderbar!_" Donnerstag said. "OK, then. _Gehen sie mit _Frost Man, and I'll see you in the morning."

The tired travellers followed Frost Man upstairs to a room with four cots. "Well, a good's night's rest is just what I need," Sharon said.

"That's funny," Darren said. "Without the time difference, we shouldn't be at all tired at this hour."

"Well, ya have to adjust for the time difference, D," Sharon chuckled as she peeled off her boots and flopped onto the cot.

"Oh, boy..." Darren chuckled as he removed his cap and sat down to pull off his own boots.

"Umm, Darren," Iris said as she took off her beret and shoes. "Are you OK?..."

"What're you talking about, Iris?" Darren chuckled. "I'm just fine. Good night." With that, he pulled the sheets over himself and went to sleep.

Iris got into her covers and looked back at Darren. She felt bad for him; though he covered it up with his goofy antics, he'd really had a rough life. She decided to be much nicer to him in the future. With that in mind, she looked at him until sleep overtook her.

* * *

Morning broke... sort of. The sun was just barely up around 8:00 AM, when the brave adventurers were sitting down to breakfast.

"Well, that was refreshing," Professor Smith said as he sipped some apple juice. "Where's Sharon this morning?"

"Urgh..." Sharon grunted as she lumbered down the stairs. Several sheets and blankets clung tightly to her. "Damn static electricity," she muttered

"Hey, bedhead," Darren chuckled. "Nice outfit."

"Awww, shut up," Sharon said as she bopped him with a pillow.

Iris's eyes bugged out, her teeth chattered and her body shook all over.

"...What's wrong, Iris?" Darren asked.

"The night was cold, and the coffee is hot," Donnerstag said as he poured himself a mug of the black stuff. He sipped it and his face went bright red and his eyes spouted tears of satisfaction. "WHOO! Ah... Hits the spot."

"Maybe you should've had orange juice," Sharon said to Iris. Iris nodded in response.

"OK, here's the plan," Smith said as he pulled out a weathered map. "Donnerstag had this map on hand, and he's agreed to loan us his snowspeeder to get out there. Because of what happened in Detroit, I think that we should stay together this time, all right?"

"Mmh," Sharon said.

"That sounds much better," Darren said. "What do you think, Iris?"

Iris's teeth chattered.

"...Uh, Doc?" Darren asked. "Do you think we could get some decaf over here?"

* * *

Riding on Donnerstag's snowspeeder, the four friends arrived at the abandoned Repliforce base in the early afternoon. The base was almost entirely sunken into the frozen earth from so many years of neglect. The sunlight danced off the snow all around the collapsed building in a blinding sheen.

"Well, here we are," Professor Smith said as he exhaled a long stream of breath. Everyone but Sharon was bundled up in thick, eskimo-like garments to stay warm.

"Why don't you need a jacket, Sharon?" Iris asked.

"I was built to be a fire-elemental reploid," Sharon explained as she shot a small ball of fire from her arm cannon. "I can stay warm in temperatures down to -200 degrees Celsius!"

"Wow..." Iris responded. "Well, you certainly won't have blue lips any time soon..."

"How are we going to get inside?" Professor Smith asked as he looked around. "This place is almost entirely underground now... Where's an entrance?"

Everyone fanned out to search for some way into the base. Darren walked around the parameter of the building. "Hmmm..." he said as he looked. "I don't see any windows here... No chance of getting in that way... How else could we get in?..."

Darren walked a little further and then stopped; he felt as if something was different where he was standing. He looked down at the knee-high snow, but didn't see anything out of the ordinary. "Hmmm..." he said.

Darren took another step and heard a CRUNCH sound. Instantly he knew what was different; the sound was different, meaning that the snow wasn't as thick where he was standing. There was probably a tunnel or cave somewhere beneath him. "Maybe it leads into the base?" he asked. "I'd better tell the others!"

Darren walked towards the others, who were looking around a few yards from him. "Hey, guys!" he yelled as he broke into a run.

"What's that?" Sharon asked as everyone watched Darren run at them. "What did you say, Darren?"

"I said that I think I found-" Darren said as he ran. Just then, he tripped over his feet and crashed down. Several loud snaps were clearly heard, and then the snow fell out from beneath everyone.

"Eyaaaahhh!" Iris cried as she suddenly felt herself falling.

"WHAAAAGHHH!" Sharon screamed as all four fell onto a steep slide made of solid ice.

"Well, he definitely found something!" Smith yelled.

The friends flew down the winding slide at breakneck speed. As they went, though, it became harder and harder to stay on the track. Finally,Smith lost control, smashed through a fragile snow wall and disappeared. Shortly afterwards, Sharon fell off the slide and into the darkness below, and Darren rolled onto an alternate slope and vanished. Iris held on with all her might and slid until she landed on a hard, metal floor.

"Owwww..." Iris groaned as she rubbed her sore tuckus and looked around. She was sitting in a large room full of equipment with Repliforce's familiar insignia stamped upon it. "Well, at least I made it inside," she said as she got up.

Though she was glad that she had found the entrance, she glanced around nervously for her friends. She called their names several times, but received no answers. "Oh... I should go and look for them," she said. "But it's so dark... How will I?..."

Just then, Iris had an idea; she drew her Z-saber and activated its green beam. The beam threw a faint light on the terrain, making things much more navigable. "Zero... light my way," she murmured as she searched.

She walked down several ruined halls and checked in every room. Every now and then her foot would crush something and she would glance down to see a half-buried, frozen Reploid corpse. After this happened several times, she decided not to look down. "So many bodies... There must have been a Maverick attack here..." she said softly.

Iris walked down the halls until she reached a larger room where the floor was practically an ice rink. "Hmm... I think this is the control center," Iris said as she looked around. "Maybe I can find some chips in the consoles over there?..." She stepped out onto the ice, slipped and fell on her bottom again. "Ow!" she winced. "This just isn't my day..."

Just then, Iris heard a loud groan from nearby. "What!" she gasped as she looked around frantically.

A figure lay on the ice nearby. Iris stared at it, wondering what it could be. Suddenly, it groaned again and Iris instantly knew who it was. "Professor!" she exclaimed as she slid over to the scientist and helped him up.

"Ugh...(Cough) Iris... You're OK?... That was quite a rush, wasn't it?" Smith asked as he glanced at Iris with a grin. "I'm fine... Just a bit shakey." He spat snow out of his mouth and stroked his stubble clean. "Have you found anyone else yet?"

"No, I'm afraid not..." Iris replied sadly. "If we keep looking, though, I'm sure we can-"

"HELLLP!" a voice yelled from behind Iris and the professor. They looked back, but no one was there.

"W-what was that?" Iris asked as she edged to Smith's side.

"Now, I'm sure there's a logical explanation for that..." Smith said as his glasses fogged up.

"Of course there is!" the voice yelled again. "Look above the door!"

"Huh?" Iris asked as she looked up and her eyes widened. Above the doorway that she had come from, hanging from a dislodged I-beam by his pants, was Darren.

"Darren!" Iris exclaimed happily. "Great! We found you!"

"Iris, prof, get me down, quick!" Darren cried as he stayed very still.

"What's wrong?" asked Iris.

"If you don't-" Darren started to say when his pants tore wide open and he fell to the ice. "...Well, now you see why," he grumbled.

"Two hands there, son," Smith chuckled.

"I guess you were caught with your pants down," Iris snickered.

"It's not funny!" Darren barked at the giggling duo, but he found that he was chuckling a bit too, so he let it go.

"Hey, what's so funny?" a voice wheezed from behind Professor Smith. Everyone whipped around to see Sharon limping towards them.

"Sharon! You're OK, too!" Iris said. "Great! We're all safe and sound."

"Yeah..." Sharon said with a smile. Just then, she looked down and grinned cruelly. "Heh! Safe, yes. Sound... Dunno. I see London, I see France..." she mused.

"Oh, shut up," Darren grumbled.

"It's a good thing that we're all in this room," Iris said as she pointed to the nearby control consoles. "Let's take those consoles apart and see if we can find some useful chips."

"Sounds good to me," Darren said as he quickly walked across the ice, took out a screwdriver and set about prying the terminals open. "Hey, Iris, shine your light over here, OK?" he asked.

"Eh!..." Sharon gulped as her mouth dropped.

"What? What is it?" Darren asked as he worked.

"You mean to tell me that you can't walk ten feet without stumbling, but you can flawlessly hike across ice!" Sharon asked.

"I did?" Darren asked as he looked down at the ice. "What do you know! I guess I did."

"Ay yai yai..." Sharon sighed with a shake of her head.

After checking all the other consoles for any kinds of computer chips, Darren pried open the last one and dug around inside. "I hope there's something in here," he grunted as he felt around. "Otherwise, this whole trip will have been a bust!"

"Just feel around really thoroughly, Darren!" Iris reminded. "Please, don't neglect anything!"

"I'm trying, Iris, but there doesn't seem to be any-" Darren started to say when his hand clamped down on something. Everyone gasped in delight as he yanked out a circuit board with several computer chips. "Nice! Let's take this thing back to the museum!" he said as he jammed it into his jacket. "I'll bet we can-"

Darren was interrupted by a loud rumbling. The ground shook fiercely, sending everyone to their knees. The first tremor was followed by a second, and then a third. Huge tufts of snow that had been clinging to the ceiling flopped down onto the icy floor.

"If this shaking keeps up, this whole place could cave in!" Smith gulped as he covered his face against another dousing of snow.

"What's doing this!" Sharon growled as she looked around angrily.

"I only know of one person who could do something like this," Iris said as she held her saber up and looked around. "But..."

Much to everyone's surprise, bright lights sparked on and illuminated the entire room. The eastern wall cracked and then shattered altogether to reveal a giant Reploid walrus. He clapped his mammoth hands together and spewed a long trail of cold breath.

"Woah!" Darren gulped.

"So," the walrus said. "Some unwanted company..."

"Frost Walrus!" Iris growled.

"Frost Walrus!" Sharon asked. "Wasn't he a prominent officer in Repliforce!"

"Indeed, I was," Walrus said as he looked at Iris. "But now I have a new mission. Stand back and let me complete it."

"You want Iris and the chips, too!" Darren said as he ran over to his friends. "Well, there's no way we're gonna let you get either!"

"Is that so?" Walrus said as he raised an eyebrow. "And how are two humans and a weak-looking Reploid going to stop me?"

"W-w-weak!" Sharon fumed. "You!... Take THIS!"

Sharon fired a blast from her arm cannon, but Frost Walrus intercepted it with his hand and it fizzled out on impact.

"...Ulp!" Sharon gulped.

"See?" Walrus said. "Don't try to stop me."

"Oh, we're not going to try," Darren growled. "We ARE going to stop you!"

"...Cheeky," Frost Walrus growled. "Very well, then. I'll have to take care of things the old-fashioned way..." He sucked in his breath and leaped forward towards the adventurers.

"AHHH! Get outta the way!" yelled Smith.

As the party separated to avoid getting crushed, Iris tripped and fell to her knees. Frost Walrus landed right behind her and snatched her up with his massive fist. "So, Iris," he sneered. "I haven't seen you since the old Repliforce days..."

"It's very good to see you too, Frost Walrus, but we're obviously two different people now," Iris said as she slashed Walrus's face with her Z-saber. The giant beast howled in pain and dropped her, then retreated to grasp at his face.

"How d'ya like that, you popsicle stick reject!" Sharon yelled as she trained her S-Buster on him. "And here's another somethin' for ya!"

Sharon's gun fired a huge blast of flames that engulfed Frost Walrus and melted away his icicle tusks. When the blaze subsided, Walrus merely exhaled and produced another set. "Is that the best you can do?" he asked as he reached down and grabbed Iris again. "Now, you're coming with me, and that's that."

Darren had been watching the fight from the sidelines, but now he was beginning to feel something building inside of him. As he watched Iris struggle against Frost Walrus, he mind raced back to Tara. Darren sighed sadly as he recalled that he did nothing to help Tara, and she was killed by the attacking Maverick. "Tara..." he choked as he rubbed the ring on his hand. "I... I'm not going to fail someone else... I won't! I WON'T!"

"Darren, are you OK?" Professor Smith asked.

"I'm coming, Iris!" Darren yelled as he angrily charged towards Frost Walrus.

"What's this?" Frost Walrus chuckled. "This human actually wants to fight? This should be interesting."

"GRAAAAAAHHH!" Darren yelled ferociously as he flew at Frost Walrus. At the last moment, the walrus lifted his foot and Darren slid under it. Darren stopped running in confusion, and Frost Walrus kicked him across the snow. Darren rolled a good ten feet, taking most of the snow with him, before he came to a halt.

"Darren!" Iris cried. Darren wheezed a bit, but didn't get up.

"What was that supposed to do?" Walrus said mockingly.

Iris gritted her teeth as angry tears sprang to her eyes, but suddenly she looked down and got an idea. Darren had left a huge hole in the snow on his trip across the room, and the slippery sheet of ice was visible. "THIS!" she said as she jabbed Frost Walrus's hand with her blade. He instinctively dropped her and she shoved him onto the frozen water.

"Hey, what the-" he said as he staggered, then slipped and fell on his rear.

Iris ran up to Frost Walrus and sent her saber through his gut, and he exploded with a loud bleat. As soon as Frost Walrus was gone, she felt her saber change. She looked down at a small screen on its edge to see the words ICE SWORD.

"Looks like you learned a new saber technique, Iris," Sharon observed. "Boy, you ripped him up good! Are you sure you haven't done this before!"

"...I never want to have kill," Iris stated as she sheathed her saber. "I hope we can end this as soon as possible."

Iris walked over to Darren and helped him up. "That was really brave, Darren," she said as she smiled warmly at him. "Thank you..."

Darren blushed and looked away. "I watched my girlfriend die. I'm not about to let someone else follow suit."

"Well, that was very considerate of you. Thanks, Darren..." she said as she leaned forward and kissed Darren on the cheek.

Darren's eyes lit up and he blushed as red as a strawberry. "Aww, go on," he chuckled.

"So, Darren," Sharon said. "D'ya think you can find something useful on that board?"

"I don't know," Darren said as he looked at the circuit board. "Chips and stuff aren't really my thing... If we take it back to the museum, Professor Smith and Krein and Olson might be able to do something."

"We'll certainly try our best," Smith said as he looked the piece over. "Come along, guys. We have get back to Donnerstag's lab and teleport back to the museum."

"But first, we've got to find a way outta here," Sharon objected.

Suddenly, the room's ceiling crumbled away and the bright afternoon sunlight shone down.

"...Found one," Darren said.

* * *

Back at the Science Museum, Professor Krein put down the phone and turned to Professor Smith. "That was Donnerstag," he said. "He called to thank you for sharing your results with him, but he wants to wait a while before using them."

"That's good to hear," Darren said. "Donnerstag wasn't so bad, and that Frost Man guy was absolutely bonkers."

"You seem to be back to your old self, Darren," Sharon commented.

Darren chuckled. "Well, let's just say that I found out there are some people who still care about me."

Iris smiled warmly. "I'm glad too, Darren. I thought Zero and Colonel were the only ones that cared for me. Thanks."

"Oh, stop it. This's as sickening as a '7th Hell' episode," Olson grunted.

"Hey, check this out," Professor Smith said as he held the Beta chip and a chip from the circuit board up. "These two chips are very similar... Aha! This one has the Greek symbol "Gamma" printed on it! It's part of the syrum!"

"Oh, that's wonderful!" Iris cried. "We've got half of it now!"

"Now, how do these things interact?..." Smith asked as he looked the pieces over. "Hmmm..."

Darren came up beside him and looked at the chips. "Uh, Professor?" he asked. "May I take a look?"

"Hmm?" Smith asked. "Oh, sure."

Professor Smith handed Darren the two chips. Darren placed the Beta on top of the Gamma, and they fit together perfectly. "Aha! I thought so!" he said. "It's just like a jigsaw puzzle!"

"Awesome," Sharon said. "Two down, two to go!"

"And with someone like Darren on our side, we're sure to find them all the faster!" Iris laughed.

Darren smiled widely.


	5. By The Beautiful Sea

**CHAPTER 5**

**BY THE BEAUTIFUL SEA**

"So, that's two parts of the syrum we have now," Darren said as he eyed the mysterious computer chips that sat on Professor Smith's desk. "We're doing good!"

"Yes, but now where do we go?" Iris asked. "How many more ruins are out there? And which ones would have what we need?"

"I'm sure we'll find some place with the stuff you need to make your syrum," Sharon answered as she stretched and leaned against the lab wall.

"Hmmm..." Professor Smith said as he studied a map. "Where WOULD another good place be? There are so many places to try... I can't decide."

"Excuse me, Professor," Snake Man said as he entered the room with an open envelope in his hand. "You got a letter from Dr. Thompson."

"Dr. Thompson?" Smith asked as he looked up with definite interest. "Great! Thanks, Snake Man." He took the envelope, pulled out the letter inside and read it intensely.

"Well? What's that?" Sharon asked as Darren, Iris and she crowded around Smith.

"Aha!" Smith announced. "My good friend Dr. Thompson has asked me to come to her lab in Australia to help her excavate a ruined reploid factory. That sounds like fun, eh?"

"Excavate a factory?" Sharon asked. "We're lookin' for computer chips, prof! That won't help!"

"Actually, it might," Smith said as he threw Sharon a sly grin. "It turns out that Dr. Thompson's lab is right on the northeastern coast, and a few miles out on the water is a sunken naval base. I'll bet you dollars to donuts there's some useful chips down there! While I'm helping Dr. Thompson, you three can dive for the base and take a look!"

"The ocean?..." Sharon asked, her eyes widening with shock and anger.

"That sounds like a great idea!" Darren said. "What do you say, Iris?"

"It could give us another part of the syrum, couldn't it?" Iris said as she scratched her chin. "OK! I'm in!"

"Wonderful," Professor Smith said as he grabbed a telephone. "I'll call her and tell her that we're coming, and we can teleport there in half an hour. OK?"

"Hmmph," Sharon grunted as she stomped out of the room.

"What's wrong with Sharon all of a sudden?" Iris asked. "She seemed fine a few minutes ago..."

"I have no idea," Darren replied.

"She's usually pretty bad tempered," Snake Man pointed out. "Though I have noticed that she gets much more irritable than usual whenever someone mentions oceans."

"Really?" Iris asked. "Hmm... Let's go and talk to her."

Iris and Darren found Sharon out by the fountain in front of the museum, practicing some of her martial arts techniques. She punched and kicked with intense ferocity, sending out loud WHOOSH sounds as she moved. The look on her face suggested that she was pretty darn angry.

"Sharon?" Iris asked. "What's up?"

"Is something wrong?" Darren asked. "Are you coming with us?"

"N'aaarrgh!" Sharon snarled as she pulled off a perfect somersault and landed in front of her friends. "Sure I'm coming with ya. I can't leave you guys hanging."

"Well, that's good, but you seem pretty ill-tempered right now," Iris pointed out. "What's going on?"

"Nothing," Sharon repeated. "I'm just fine."

"But you got really angry when Professor Smith mentioned the ocean," Darren said. "What's the matter? You can tell us."

Sharon snorted angrily, but her glare softened. "...Thanks, guys," she said. "But it's not that big a deal. Oceans... just bring back a lot of bad memories."

"Bad memories?" Iris asked.

"Care to enlighten us?" Darren added.

"Ahh, not right now," Sharon replied. "I mean, come on, we've gotta go hook up with Smith and get going, right?"

"Yes, that's right," Iris replied. "Come on, guys! Let's go."

"All right," Darren said. "Are you coming, Sharon?"

"Yeah, just gimme a minute to catch my breath," Sharon answered.

As Iris and Darren vanished back into the museum, Sharon sighed heavily and cast her gaze downward, letting her mind drift back into its darkest recesses. "The ocean... brought me nothing but agony..." she murmured softly, her voice almost cracking.

Suddenly, Sharon's eyes flew open in rage. With a loud war cry, she kicked backwards and knocked a huge gash into the fountain's side before heading back towards the museum doors.

* * *

"OK, we're all set!" Professor Smith said as Snake Man typed away at the teleporter's computer. "Who's ready to spend some time on the beach?"

Iris and Darren responded enthusiastically. Sharon just stamped her foot and snorted.

"OK, then," Snake Man said as the teleporter started whirring and flashing. "Who's going first?"

One by one, the friends mounted the machine and vanished. Iris was last; for a moment, she felt like a million dandelion seeds floating on a gentle wind, and then she was standing on a sandy beach, watching a beautiful ocean sunset.

"Well, here we are!" Professor Smith announced. "We're on a beach near Cooktown, on the northeast point of Australia. The Great Barrier Reef and the sunken base are just north of here."

"I see..." Iris said as she peered out over the waves. "This is beautiful..."

"The Colony crash really didn't affect Australia very much," Darren pointed out. "Now, where could we-"

"Professor! Professor Smith!" a voice called from nearby.

Everyone turned to see an African-American woman in a labcoat running towards them, with a robot assistant trailing behind. She stopped in front of them and panted for a moment, then regained her posture. "Good to see you made it, Ross," she said as she extended her hand. "It's been a while."

"Too long,"Smith chuckled as he shook the woman's hand vigorously. He then turned back to his friends. "Emma, these are my friends Iris, Sharon and Darren. Guys, this is Dr. Thompson."

"Nice to meet you, ma'am," Iris replied as she shook Dr. Thompson's hand warmly.

"So, you're Iris Thorne, huh?" Dr. Thompson asked with a smile. "I've heard a lot about you. It's good to meet all of you."

Darren looked at the assistant. He was a small, grayish-green fellow equipped with an oxygen tank and flippers. "Who're you, friend?" he inquired.

"Hello, my name's Bubble Man," Bubble Man replied. "I'm Dr. Thompson's assistant."

"Yeah, Bubble Man's been a real help with my research," Dr. Thompson chuckled. "I owe Ross a lot of thanks for teaching me about reactivating robots."

"Emma, these guys are looking for some computer chips, and they think something that they need might be at the old marine base," Smith explained.

"The marine base?" Dr. Thompson asked. "Hmm, that's an odd place for anything to be, but if you guys really need to go, I have a boat that you can use."

"A boat?" Darren asked. "Yes, ma'am! That'll do fine!"

"Wonderful," Thompson answered. "Come along to my lab, and we'll get you all prepared."

The party followed Dr. Thompson towards a large building on the shoreline. As they walked, Iris glanced over at Sharon, who was glaring stonily ahead with a set jaw. Every so often, she glanced out at the ocean and muttered something under her breath.

"Sharon?" Iris asked. "Are you OK?"

"Hmm?" Sharon asked as she glanced over at Iris. "Oh, I'm fine, Iris. Don't worry about a thing!"

Iris gave a concerned look, but shrugged and kept walking. "OK, if you say so," she replied.

* * *

"All right," Dr. Thompson said as she led the group down to an indoor dock. "This boat'll get you out to the reef in no time at all!"

Thompson turned on the lights and everyone stared in amazement. Floating at the dock was a long, sharp-looking red boat with a huge motor attached to the back. The title S.S. BEOULVE was painted neatly on its side.

"Wow," Darren exclaimed as he looked over the ship. "This looks really fast!"

"You bet it is," Dr. Thompson chuckled. "Built it myself. A normal motorboat can get you to the reef in three hours. This will do it in fifteen minutes."

"This is wonderful!" Iris said. "Thank you so much, Dr. Thompson!"

"Oh, don't worry about it," Thompson laughed. "I haven't been out sailing in a while, so it needs some exercise. Oh! One other thing..."

Dr. Thompson pulled a small, spherical machine from her labcoat and gave it to Darren. "This is called a rebreather," she said. "Just give it a squeeze when you go underwater, and an bubble of oxygen will surround you. It's very useful!"

"Thanks," Darren said as he took the rebreather. "You bet I'll use it."

"You guys have fun exploring the base," Professor Smith said. "I''ll be here, helping Dr. Thompson with her factory research."

"Hang on," Iris spoke up. "We don't know where the reef is!"

"Don't worry about that," Bubble Man said as he hopped onto the boat and grabbed the wheel. "I'll come with you and pilot!"

"Great!" Darren said. "Well, what are we waiting for? Let's cast off!"

"Whoopee," Sharon grumbled as she got in the boat and plopped down. Iris and Darren exchanged looks, but said nothing and hopped in too.

"I'll see you guys later!" Smith said as the boat pulled out of the dock. "Good luck!"

"So, Bubble Man," Darren said. "How fast can this thing go?"

Bubble Man grinned. "You're about to find out!" he chuckled as he yanked back on the lever.

The boat sped off across the water at breakneck speed. Darren was so surprised that he topped backwards into Iris. "Sorry," he replied.

"It's OK," Iris mumbled as she gently pushed Darren off. "I'm getting used to it."

Iris got up, walked to the front of the boat and watched as the ocean unfolded in front of her. She had always loved watching the sun set over the waters that had surrounded the Repliforce base, and now she felt the same warm feeling as she had then. She cheerfully took off her beret and let her hair blow freely in the salty twilight air.

After Iris came off of her reverie, she looked back at her friends. To her surprise, Sharon was huddled in one corner of the boat, in a sulking-like state.

"Hey, Sharon," Iris said as she walked over. "Are you sure you're OK? I mean, if you get seasick or something, you can tell me. I-"

Iris looked again at Sharon and her eyes widened in surprise. Tears were dribbling down the fire-type Reploid's cheeks.

"Sharon?..." Iris asked. "What's wrong?"

"It's nothing," Sharon muttered as she wiped her face and looked away. "Go on and enjoy yourself."

"No," Iris said as she sat down beside Sharon. "You've been acting funny during this whole trip. Something's bothering you, and I'd like to know if I can help."

"Nobody can help," Sharon grumbled. "It's all in the past now."

"So?" Iris asked. "Tell me about it."

"Fine," Sharon muttered as she coughed a few times. "I was created about twenty years ago on a tiny island in the Pacific by Dr. Keitaro Sushi, a learned scientist."

"Yes?" Iris asked. "So, Dr. Sushi was like your father, then?"

"I would NEVER call him that," Sharon fumed. "Not after what he did to me..."

There was a pause. "What did he do?" Iris asked.

"Most Reploids are created to become contributing members of society," Sharon said. "They go to school, work, play and get careers... From the moment Sushi activated me, he kept me totally segregated from others." She swallowed hard. "He told me that my only purpose was to please him; I was the servant and he was the master. If I didn't submit to him, I would be punished.

"So, as the days progressed, I learned all kinds of servitude to make the man happy. Still, after a while that wasn't enough. Even though I kept his lab clean, cooked his meals and washed his clothes, he wanted more... One night, after I was finished with my chores and went to bed, he came into my room and tried to..."

"Oh!..." Iris gasped as she involuntarily put her hand over her mouth. "Sharon..."

"I didn't understand what he was doing, but I didn't like it," Sharon continued. "I pushed him away and ran as hard as I could... Finally, though, I had to stop. We were on a tiny island, over 500 kilometers from any other settlements, and I couldn't swim... He caught me on the beach... and..."

Iris could do nothing but shake her head in disbelief.

"That was just the beginning," Sharon continued. "He expected it daily, and I had to submit, never taking any pleasure from it... He told me that it was all I was good for, and I began to believe him... But then, one morning, after a fierce tropical storm, I looked out my window and saw a small boat washed up on shore. Instantly, one word repeated over and over in my mind: escape.

"That day, I was especially nice to Sushi, so he wouldn't expect my plan. Then, after I had lulled him to sleep, I snuck out and took the boat. I suppose I could have rode to Japan, since it was the closest place around, but I didn't know that. Eventually, a storm hit and shattered my boat, sending me into the watery depths.

"I came to on a beach in Washington. From there, I wandered the country, worrying about very little. I was elated; I was free from Sushi's grip. Unfortunately, I had never learned to read, write or do math, so I couldn't really communicate with many people. That, fortunately, was when Professor Smith came along and pulled me out of the rut. He taught me everything that Sushi never wanted me to learn, and I became a prominent security guard at the museum. I also chose a new name for myself: Sharon Doherty, after a Maverick Hunter of the same name.

"Still, even though I've made so much progress, I've always hated the ocean," Sharon sighed sadly as she looked out over the water. "I've never stopped seeing it as a cage... A cage that kept me locked up with a horrible monster..."

Iris put her hand on Sharon's shoulder. "I'm sorry, Sharon," she said. "I can't even imagine what that was like."

"I've trained myself so that what Sushi did to me will never be repeated," Sharon said as she flexed her arm. "I've also vowed never to remove my body armor for the same reason."

"I see..." Iris replied. "But... You'll help us when we get to the marine base, right?"

"Of course," Sharon said. "My personal feelings aren't important in this. I said I was going to help you, and help you I will."

"Thanks, Sharon," Iris said. "But if things get a little too hard for you, just tell us. We'll help you out."

"Bah!" Sharon snorted as she folded her arms and looked away. "I'm not some weakling."

"Well, OK..." Iris said.

"Madam Iris!" Bubble Man called from the front of ths ship. "We've arrived!"

Iris and Sharon walked over and saw that the boat was floating a few meters away from a rainbow-colored reef. "The base is about fifty meters beneath us," Bubble Man stated. "You'll have to dive the rest of the way."

"All right," Darren said. "Thanks, Bubble Man."

"All right!" Sharon growled as she stretched a few times, dove into the water and shot up a few feet away. "C'mon, guys! That chip isn't gonna find itself!"

"Coming!" Iris said as she started towards the edge.

"Uh, Iris, I dunno if you should-" Darren started.

Iris disappeared into the water. After three seconds, she bobbed back up and stayed on the surface, her skirt spread out like a giant lillypad.

"Uh..." Iris said as she looked down. "...What's this all about?"

"I thought as much," Darren said. "That skirt of yours will trap air and make it impossible for you to swim. Maybe you should change into something more appropriate."

"Oh... Ummm... Ha ha ha!" Iris laughed embarrassedly as she hauled herself back onto the boat. "Of course! Do we have any diving suits?"

"Sorry," Bubble Man said as he opened a small cabinet and looked inside. "I guess Dr. Thompson took them out for cleaning."

Iris gulped hard. "Great," she said. "Now what?"

"Well, uh..." Darren said as he coughed uncomfortably. "...You ARE wearing something under that, right?"

"Yeah," Iris said as she looked around. "I have some undergarments... Do you think I could swim well enough in them?"

"I don't see any other choice," Darren muttered. "Let's try it."

"All right," Iris replied as she nervously peeled off her top layer to reveal her white, leotard-like undergarments. She blinked for a moment as she felt the wind on her bare shoulders, then turned to Darren. "Will these do?" she asked.

"U-ummm..." Darren gulped with a blush. "...Y-yeah, those will work just fine. But, uh... They're kinda thin."

"Thin?" Iris asked as she looked down again. "Well, I suppose so... They are just undergarments, after all. Why?"

Darren quickly pulled off his shirt and handed it to her. "Just put this on," he muttered. "That should work."

Iris stared questioningly at Darren's chest for a moment, then realized what he was getting at. Blushing madly, she jammed the shirt on. "How's that?" she asked.

"Much better," Darren said as he wiped the sweat off his brow. "Any longer and my nose would've started bleeding. Let's go."

Iris and Darren dived into the water and swam over to Sharon. "About time," Sharon muttered. "Let's get goin'!"

"When we go under, we won't be able to talk," Darren pointed out as he strapped on his rebreather. "Let's stay really close together."

Everyone ducked under the waves and swam straight downward. Slowly, a massive structure appeared from the gloomy darkness, and then they were floating just above the abandoned naval base.

Iris looked at her friends. With a quick gesture and a nod, Darren led everyone around the building in search of an entrance. As they rounded one of the building's corners, Sharon pointed frantically towards a rectangular opening that could have been a dock. The three friends swam to it, pulled at the bottom and forced it open.

Iris and company floated into the flood chamber and looked around. Darren swam to a small control box on the far side of the tiny room and poked at the buttons. Immediately the door slammed shut behind them and all the water drained out.

"Great work, Darren!" Iris said. "How did you know how to drain the chamber?"

"Umm," Darren said with a nervous look. "I didn't. I think it drained all by itself."

Sharon frowned. "That's not good," she growled. "Stay on your toes. This could be a trap..."

A door next to the control panel slid open, beckoning the adventurers into the ruined base.

"Should we go in?" Iris asked.

"Hey, if we want to find that chip, we do," Sharon replied. "C'mon, let's get this over with."

"Did you guys notice something when we came in here?" Darren asked as he took the rebreather out of his mouth.

"What?" Iris asked.

"There's air in here," Darren said. "I can actually breathe! If this base was abandoned, it would have flooded by now..."

"Jeez, you're right," Sharon said. "Now I'm totally sure that this is a trap!"

"Maybe it was a lot of lucky accidents," Iris spoke up, trying to boost her friends' morale.

"There's only one way to find out, really," Darren replied as he looked around nervously. "Let's go further in."

The party set off down the dimly lit pathway, stopping every now and then to investigate a side room or two, but they didn't find anything of interest. The base was pretty cleaned out; the staff had probably taken most of everything when they had abandoned it.

"Nope, nothing in here," Darren said as he emerged from another side room. "We've been looking around for two hours. I wonder if this was a dead end?"

"It's beginning to look like that, isn't it?..." Iris sighed sadly. "Oh, well... We can't win them all, can we?..."

"On the plus side, Sharon seems to have perked up a little," Darren said as he motioned in Sharon's direction; she was poking around in another room and humming an off-key tune.

"That's good," Iris said as she recalled what Sharon had told her. "This must be really hard for her..."

"Well, she's been pretty hot-headed since I met her," Darren replied. "But her recent behavior was kinda weird. I'm glad to see her acting normally."

"Yeah..." Iris said.

"Umm, Iris," Darren said as he shifted his weight. "Is something wrong?"

"Huh? What?" Iris asked as she quickly looked up.

"You've been staring at me funny all through the conversation," Darren said. "What's up?"

"Huh?! Oh, it's nothing... Really!..." Iris gulped as she looked away and blushed.

Darren chuckled. "Ahh, don't worry about it," he replied. "Let's just keep searching."

"Yeah... Yeah..." Iris agreed as she ducked into another room and started searching. She glanced back once more at Darren's physique, then went on with her work.

* * *

Five hours after they had entered the station, the group still hadn't found anything. "This is really discouraging," Darren muttered as he sat down to rest. "Maybe this was a red herring."

"Although, have you noticed that the air hasn't thinned any since we arrived?" Iris asked. "It's like it's being freshly pumped."

"C'mon, guys," Sharon said. "There's still one place we haven't checked yet. Let's find the central control room and search there!"

"The central control room..." Iris said. "Of course! I bet there'll be all sorts of computer stuff there!"

"Great thinking, Sharon," Darren said. "Let's find a way there."

Sharon pulled open another door and found a ladder. "Problem solved," she said smugly.

The party climbed up through a narrow shaft until they reached another door, which Sharon also opened. They stepped out into a large chamber filled with control consoles and blinking lights.

"Woah," Darren said. "I think this is the control room."

"Great!" Sharon said as she dashed forward and looked around. "Let's find some chips and get out of here!"

"Wait a minute..." Iris said as she looked down. A thin layer of water was covering the whole floor. "This is strange... What do you think-"

Suddenly, two huge, red tentacles wrapped around Iris and Darren and hoisted them into the air. "Whaaaaagh!" Iris cried as she dangled helplessly.

"What IS this?!" Darren yelled as he struggled.

"Writhe all you want, but it won't help you," a dark voice said from below them. Everyone looked and saw a shining, red Reploid octopus with gun turrets lining his shoulder pads. Two of his tentacles clutched Iris and Darren several feet off of the floor.

"I've heard about you!" Sharon said. "Launch Octopus, right?"

Octopus sneered. "So good of you to save me an introduction," he said. One of his tentacles raised something sparkly up. "Looking for this?" he asked.

"Agh!" Darren exclaimed as he looked down at the object. "A computer chip! I bet it's one we need!"

Launch Octopus laughed. "Defeat me and it's yours," he said. "Of course, what can you do up there? Heh heh heh!"

"You've forgotten something!" Iris retorted. "Sharon! You can take this guy, can't you?"

"You bet!" Sharon growled as she struck a fighting pose.

Octopus laughed even harder than before. "You, a fire-type Reploid, challenging ME?! What a foolish weakling!!!"

Sharon gritted her teeth and readied herself. "Bring it on," she snarled.

"With pleasure!" Launch Octopus said as his tentacles readied for combat.

Sharon fired a few rounds with her S-Buster cannon, but Launch Octopus swung his tentacles and dissolved them. "Wh-what?!" Sharon gasped.

"You pathetic fool!" Octopus sneered. "You are fire! Such a weak force can't stand against water!"

"There's that word again," Sharon growled angrily. "You're in for it now!!!" She leaped and caught the Maverick with a spinning kick.

"Yeah! Nice one, Sharon!" Darren cheered.

"I don't think it was enough, though," Iris warned. "Look!"

Launch Octopus skidded backwards, but didn't show any pain. With a cruel look, he whipped out his free tentacles and lashed Sharon fiercely. She stumbled backwards and fell to one knee. "You're spunky," Octopus cackled. "But that doesn't make up for your poor ability!"

"My abilities aren't poor!" Sharon growled, starting to pant angrily. "You want power? I'll show you power! HYAAAAHHH!!!"

Sharon flew at Launch Octopus and pummeled him with punches and kicks. No matter how many blows she landed, though, the Maverick wasn't feeling anything. With one well-placed smack, Launch Octopus sent Sharon crashing to the floor.

"My armor is rock-solid!" Launch Octopus laughed. "No fisticuffs of yours will penetrate it! As for you, however..."

Iris and Darren cringed as Launch Octopus whipped Sharon over and over, then coiled his tentacles around her legs and banged her body against the ground. Finally, he lashed her across the back repeatedly. Sharon grunted and growled through all of this, but she never cried out in pain.

"Sharon!!!" Iris cried.

"Get up, Sharon!" Darren called.

"Quiet up there!" Launch Octopus yelled as he moved the tentacles around his captors up and around their necks, then squeezed. Darren started gagging horribly and Iris turned blue.

"Iris... Darren!..." Sharon groaned as she struggled to look up.

"Your friends will be dead soon enough," Launch Octopus laughed. "What a weakling you are. You really are worthless! I've never seen a more pathetic Reploid in my life!"

"Weak... worthless... pathetic..." Sharon whispered softly. "Weak... worthless... pathetic..."

Launch Octopus laughed loudly. "You're so weak, I don't even know why you're fighting!" he jeered. "I bet you're not good for anything!!!"

Somewhere inside Sharon, something snapped. She slowly rose to her feet, her head cast down at the ground.

"Eh?" Launch Octopus asked as he looked questioningly. "What? Haven't had enough punishment?! Well, here's some more!!!"

Launch Octopus flung his four free tentacles at Sharon with decapitating speed. Iris and Darren shut their eyes to block out the sight.

All that was heard was a dull THOCK.

After a brief pause, Iris and Darren opened their eyes and looked. Sharon's arms were spread wide, and she had all four tentacles caught in her hands.

"What's this?!" Launch Octopus asked. "Hey, let go!!!"

Sharon looked up at Launch Octopus, and everyone froze. Her eyes were wide in anger, her pupils teemed with hatred and her mouth bent into a hellish frown.

"Sh-Sharon?..." Iris asked quietly.

Sharon gave an inhuman roar and tore the tentacles from their sockets. Launch Octopus screamed in agony and dropped Iris, Darren and the chip.

"I've got it!" Darren cried as he snapped up the chip. "Let's get out of here!"

"Sharon?" Iris asked. "Sharon!!!"

Sharon was advancing on Launch Octopus, who edged away with sheer terror in his eyes. "No! Please! I give up! You win!!!" he pleaded with his remaining limbs.

"What's the matter?!" Sharon yelled as she grabbed two more of Launch Octopus's tentacles and ripped them off. "Are you afraid of a WEAK, WORTHLESS LITTLE GIRL?!"

"Sharon!!!" Darren yelled. "What are you doing?!"

Sharon thrust her arms into Launch Octopus's stomach, then charged her S-Buster and fired into the hole. The Maverick gave a bloodcurling shriek and vanished. He didn't explode like a normal Reploid; he _disintegrated._

With Launch Octopus gone, Sharon panted angrily, the hateful gaze not leaving her eyes.

"Something's wrong with Sharon," Iris gulped. "We have to calm her down!"

"Sharon!" Darren said as he came up beside her. "Please, calm down! It's OK! Launch Octopus is gone! Please don't be so angry... We're your friends, remember?"

Darren placed a protective hand on Sharon's shoulder. Instantly her gaze locked on him, and he gulped in alarm. Sharon grabbed Darren's neck and flung him with a beast-like shriek.

"Darren!!!" Iris cried as she ran and caught Darren before he hit the floor.

"Vuooo..." Darren gagged as he looked up. "Thanks, Iris."

"If you had been hurt, then Sharon could have been branded a Maverick," Iris explained. "Here... I think I know what's wrong. Let me try."

Iris slowly walked over to the still-fuming Sharon. "Sharon, it's me," she said calmly. "Will you listen?"

"WEAK!!! WORTHLESS!!!" Sharon screamed, as if in anguish.

"No, you're not," Iris agreed. "Sharon, you're just as strong as anyone else! Sushi was wrong to tell you otherwise... You're not weak, and you're not worthless! You're one of the toughest and strongest Reploids I've ever met! You're also one of my closest friends!!!"

Sharon was still panting hard, but it seemed a little more controlled than before.

"So, please..." Iris said softly. "Calm down... before you hurt somebody."

"HE HURT ME!!!" Sharon yelled. "HE ALWAYS HURT ME!!!"

"Yes, he did," Iris replied. "But do you want to be like that? Do you want to hurt anyone? Do you want to hurt Darren? Or Professor Smith? Or me?"

"No... NO!!!" Sharon growled. "I'm not like him! I'm NOTHING like him!!!"

"Then... do what I know you'll do," Iris said. "Calm down... and let's go home."

Slowly, Sharon's panting slowed, then stopped. Sharon looked at Iris with sad eyes. "I'm sorry, Iris..." she said quietly. "I let him push me overboard..."

"It's all right," Iris said. "We all get angry sometimes. But..."

"Oh, no!" Sharon said. "Darren, are you OK?! I'm so sorry!"

"It's all right," Darren said. "I'm just glad that Iris is a good catcher."

Sharon stared out the glass windows at the ocean water and was quiet for a few moments more. "Come on," Iris said as she put a hand on Sharon's shoulder. "Let's get out of here."

Sharon glanced at the hand, but just smiled softly. "Thanks, guys," she said. "Yeah... Let's go home."

Darren glanced between Sharon and the glass windows. "Does this mean that you're not afraid of the ocean anymore?" he asked.

Sharon chuckled a bit. "I think... I think I can learn to live with it," she replied.

Just then, the water on the ground started to rise. "Uh-oh," Iris said. "I think Launch Octopus was what was keeping the air in here. Let's get out, quick."

"No problem. I just want my shirt back when we get back to the boat," Darren said as he stuck the rebreather in his mouth.

The three friends swam out of the abandoned base and back towards the boat on the surface.


	6. The Trials That Bind

**CHAPTER 6**

**THE TRIALS THAT BIND**

"Welcome back, guys!" Professor Smith said as the S.S. BEOULVE pulled back into Dr. Thompson's dock. "How did it go?"

"Chalk up another one for the good guys!" Darren laughed as he showed Smith the chip.

"Well done, everyone!" Smith said as he turned the chip over in his hands. The Greek symbol Alpha was branded on the back. "An Alpha chip! We're one piece away from assembling the serum!"

"Wonderful!" Iris said happily. "Then we can reactivate Zero without any Maverick activity!"

"You're lookin' for Zero?" Dr. Thompson asked suddenly.

"Yes, ma'am," Sharon replied. "If we can slap some of these chips on him before we reactivate him, he won't cause any more Maverick outbreaks!"

"That's very clever," Thompson said. "But even if you collect the chips you need, how are you going to find Zero?"

Sharon opened her mouth to answer, but she found that she didn't have one.

Dr. Thompson chuckled warmly. "Tell you what," she said as she pulled out a computer CD and handed it to Iris. "Take this. It has the most up-to-date map of ruins in the world. That should give you some more ideas about where to look."

"Thank you so much, Dr. Thompson!" Iris gasped with a polite bow. "Did you hear that, guys? More ruins to search!"

"Whoopee," Sharon grunted. "More ruins."

"Sounds like fun," Darren said. "I'm up for it!"

"Come along, guys," Smith said. "We have to get back to the museum and give the new chip to Olson and Krein. Thanks for everything, Emma. See you again sometime!"

Dr. Thompson and Bubble Man watched Iris and her friends walk off down the beach and vanish. "D'you think that serum will work?" Bubble Man asked.

"It had better," Thompson said with a frown. "My mom always told me about how horrible Mavericks were... I hope Ross knows what he's doing."

* * *

"All right..." Olson said as he stuck the Alpha chip to the others. "One more, and we'll have made a small cube. If Iris's story can be believed, we just need to put it inside of Zero, and it'll shut down the Maverick virus within him."

"Great work, guys," Krein said as he pulled off his goggles. "Only one more chip to find!"

"Yeah, but as always, where do we go?" Sharon asked as she looked at Dr. Thompson's map on a large computer screen. "There's so many ruins, I have no idea where to look."

"We've been lucky so far," Darren agreed. "But we could hit a dead end as easily as we could find something."

"You're pretty pessimistic, Darren," Iris said as she looked over Darren's shoulder. "Why wouldn't we find the chip?"

"Iris, our odds of finding the first three were diddly to squat, if Dr. Thompson's map can be believed," Darren answered as he pointed to the map. "We can't get our hopes up and expect to find the last piece right away."

"But we're so close!" Iris answered. "I can feel it in my bones! We'll find that chip!"

"I'm not saying that we won't," Darren replied. "I'm just saying that it might take time. Be patient, Iris!"

"Patient?!" Iris asked as she frowned all of a sudden. "Darren, I've been out of commission for the past hundred years! I've waited long enough to see Zero, and I want to find him right away!"

"Look, I understand completely," Darren said as he stood up. "But you can't rush these things! If we choose the wrong ruins, we'll just end up empty-handed... To make matters worse, I'm sure plenty of these ruins are booby-trapped. You can't just charge in blindly, expecting to find what you're looking for!" He shifted his weight uncomfortably. "And to top it off, some of us need to rest. I haven't taken a break since we started hunting for the chips!"

"Oh, come on!" Iris growled. "I'm sure that X and Zero wouldn't complain if they were working this hard!"

"Yeah, well, I'm not X or Zero," Darren retorted. "And I need rest, whether you like it or not! Just give me a day to rest and research this map, and we can try something new in the morning."

"I can't believe I got mixed up with someone like you, of all people!" Iris yelled angrily.

"'Someone like me?'" Darren asked as he raised an eyebrow. "What're you getting at, Iris?"

"You said you were going to help me, but now all you want to do is rest?!" Iris huffed. "How did I get stuck with such a lazy human?!"

Darren's eyes narrowed into angry slits. "Fine, then," he growled through clenched teeth. "Let's find a ruin right now."

Darren quickly typed away on his keyboard, and a photo of a triangular, stone building in the middle of a desert appeared on the screen. "Here's something," Darren said. "This is an unknown tomb in Ancient Egypt... Most people just call it the Unknown Pyramid."

"But that's old," Iris said. "We won't find any technology there!"

"I'm not finished," Darren replied. "This pyramid has become the hideout of a band of thieves who mainly steal computer wares. I bet their entire horde is in that pyramid... There might be a chip there."

"Great!" Iris said happily. "Pack your hiking boots and sunscreen, guys! We're heading out!"

Iris cheerfully ran out of the room. Darren looked after her and shook his head.

"Boy, that human crack was a low blow," Sharon sighed as she turned from her computer screen.

"It's expectable," Darren answered. "We're getting closer to finding Zero, so naturally she's getting excited, and sometimes she gets carried away."

"Iris has been pretty strong in the fights we've had," Smith recalled. "But I have noticed that she's more confident with every victory... That could lead to some trouble..."

"Well, we'd better get ourselves ready..." Darren sighed as he stood up. "I'll go tell Snake Man that we're off to Egypt."

* * *

A few hours later, Iris and her friends were walking down an empty market street. Sand blew everywhere with the slightest breeze, and a bright, pearl moon dominated the dark blue sky.

"Cairo, Egypt!" Sharon announced as they walked. "Even with a destroyed space colony and Maverick attacks, this place never changes..."

Suddenly, a little man with a camera jumped out from behind a building and stunned the group with a bright flash. After they recovered, he gave them a small card. "You come to my shop, get shot later!" he said. "Only five dollar!"

"...Even if you want it to," Darren mumbled.

"I know another robotologist that lives here," Smith said. "Let's go and visit him."

"But I want to get to the ruins!" Iris protested. "We're so close!"

"Iris, we have no idea what's in that pyramid," Darren said. "Maybe this guy knows something helpful about it."

"But..." Iris started again.

"Besides, the sun is gone," Smith broke in. "If we stay out here much longer, we'll become targets for thieves and bandits. And we really should rest for a while... My feet are killing me."

"Oh... all right," Iris said as she crossly put her foot down.

Professor Smith led the group to a large laboratory on the outskirts of town. "Dr. Ali Bahai is another great scientist," Smith said as he knocked on the door. "He helped me on the fail-safe program."

"He did?" Darren asked. "Really?"

"Along with Thompson and Donnerstag," Smith said with a grin. "What, you didn't think I just met these guys at a symposium, did you?"

"Hmm..." Darren said as he scratched his head.

The door opened and a short, skinny man appeared in the doorway. He had a big, bushy moustache, slicked-back black hair and big, goofy-looking glasses. He leaned heavily on a cane, though he still looked young, and he emitted a strong scent of spices. When he saw Professor Smith, he smiled widely. "Ah, Ross Smith! Come in, come in!" he cried. "It has been too long!"

Everybody was led into the laboratory. "I have not seen you since we finished the project!" Bahai said. "What have you been up to?"

"Oh, this and that," Smith chuckled as he motioned towards his friends. "Ali, these are my new friends: Darren, Sharon and Iris."

Bahai almost went through the roof. "Iris?! Can it be?!" he exclaimed. He practically leaped forward and looked her over intensely. "My goodness! A twenty-second century robot! A masterpiece! You are truly beautiful," He warbled as he kissed her on both cheeks.

"Ummm, thank you," Iris said as she blushed. "(Why does everyone like kissing me?...)"

"So, Dr. Bahai," Smith said. "Donnerstag revived Frost Man and Thompson has Bubble Man. Have you had any success in reviving robots?"

"Ah, yes," Bahai said as he grinned widely, then snapped his fingers. "Flame Man! Come and greet our guests!"

A red robot wearing a turban entered the room and bowed deeply. "Hello," he said. "I am Flame Man. Delighted to make your acquaintance."

"Flame Man, huh?" Sharon asked. "Heh! This 'robot assistant' thing must be all the rage."

"Do you have any other Reploids here, sir?" Darren asked. "Donnerstag had a whole collection of them, and I was wondering if you did, too."

"Yes, I do," Bahai said with another smile. "I have five Reploids. Not as many as Donnerstag, but still very good. Come, and I will show you all."

Bahai led the party into a room as high as an airport hangar. Four capsules were lined up against the far wall, and a huge object stood in the center, covered by a tarp.

"JET STINGRAY, VIOLEN, SPARK MANDRILL, BLAST HORNET... Wow," Darren said as he looked over the four capsules.

"Wait, you said that you had five Reploids," Sharon pointed out. "Where's the last one?"

"Right in front of you," Bahai chuckled as he yanked on the tarp; it fell away to reveal a huge capsule containing a titantic, Reploid wearing a golden military uniform. The huge lettering on the capsule bottom read GENERAL.

"Woah!" Darren exclaimed. "General?!"

"Sweet mother of Joe..." Sharon said. "I knew the General was big, but..."

"He was actually a nice guy," Iris said. "Nobody ever thought badly of him."

"It cost almost half a million dollars to acquire him," Bahai said. "Truly, he is the crown jewel of my collection. Ah! But it is late. You must be hungry and tired from your travels. Come, and we shall have a meal."

"Well, thanks, but we're not all that hungry, and-" Sharon started when Smith clamped his hand over her mouth.

"We'd be delighted to accept your offer, Ali," Smith said as he grinned widely at Bahai, then turned an angry eye on Sharon. "It's very rude to refuse an offer of a meal!" he whispered harshly.

"OK, OK, sheesh," Sharon grumbled.

Bahai's meal was fantastic. Nobody had ever eaten Egyptian food before, but it was very tasty. After they had eaten, Dr. Bahai had Flame Man set them up for the night in a spare room.

There was an air of calmness that night. Professor Smith and Sharon snoozed peacefully while Iris and Darren lay head to head in their sleeping bags in the far corner of the room.

"Iris?" Darren asked.

"Mmm... yes?" Iris asked dreamily. She was on the verge of falling asleep, and her voice was drowsy and soft.

"You really love Zero, don't you?" Darren asked.

"Yeah..." Iris murmured. "Ever since I joined the Maverick Hunters, he always gave me courage and hope... Over time, I came to realize that my feelings for him were beyond friendship... I never got to tell him, though... So, I want to find him right away... and make sure that he finally knows..."

"I see..." Darren replied.

Iris smiled. "Tomorrow... Tomorrow we'll find the last chip, and then we can bring Zero back..." she cooed as she closed her eyes again.

Darren sighed softly. "I know you want to see him again, Iris, but I'm worried... You're so psyched about finding the chips, that you've lost your sense of caution, and that's really dangerous... You could be walking into a huge trap, and not even know it until it's too late..."

Darren paused and turned to look at Iris. She looked very peaceful, with the moonlight shining down on her slumbering, smiling face. He gave a sad look, but then smiled gently and brushed some hair away from her eyes. "Just remember, Iris," he whispered very quietly. "Zero isn't the only person who cares about you..."

Darren turned and pulled up his covers, and the night grew silent.

* * *

The next morning, everyone awoke and had breakfast while Bahai gave them directions to the pyramid. "This temple is a den of technology theives and rogues," he said. "Perhaps what you seek is within."

"All right!" Iris said cheerfully as she gulped down the rest of her milk. "Let's get going!"

Darren wore a concerned expression, but nodded in agreement.

"No use waiting around," Smith said as he pulled on his knapsack. "Thanks for everything, Ali."

"Errmmm..." Sharon gulped as she scratched the back of her head. "Going into a pyramid... Fun. Sounds like... a whole lotta fun. Heh heh heh..."

Dr. Bahai loaned the party his dune buggy and they sped off north. After about half an hour, they came to a small, run-down pyramid silhouetted against the sky. "There it is," Professor Smith said as he stopped the buggy. "The Unknown Pyramid."

"With any luck, the last chip will be in there," Darren said. "I sure hope it is."

"What're we waiting for?" Iris asked as she hopped out into the sand. "Let's go inside!"

Iris, Darren and Professor Smith eagerly headed towards the pyramid entrance, but Sharon lingered by the buggy. "Come on, Sharon!" Darren called back. "You're coming, aren't you?"

"Ummm..." Sharon gulped as she gave a nervous laugh. "Uh, why don't you guys go on in? You don't need me for this one, do ya? Hee hee hee..."

"What's wrong, Sharon?" Smith asked.

"That pyramid's full of mummies, err, and I, uh, think I'm allergic to dead guy brains," Sharon mumbled.

"Sharon, the Ancient Egyptians removed the brains from the mummies and threw them away," Darren pointed out.

There was an awkward silence. "...I'm still not going in," Sharon retorted.

"Oh, come on," Iris said as she grabbed Sharon's arm and started dragging her towards the entrance.

"Agh! No, I'm serious!" Sharon pleaded. "I really, really hate ghosts and mummies and zombies and any creepy, crawly undead things!!!"

Iris didn't seem to hear Sharon's pleas; she just kept dragging.

"Looks like Iris says that you need to get over your fears," Darren muttered as the four travelers walked into the dark pyramid.

"Don't worry, Sharon," Smith said. "We're all here with you. You have nothing to worry about."

"Phew..." Sharon panted.

The party traveled through the ancient pyramid until they reached a dead end. "Oh, crap!" Darren grunted angrily as he looked around. "Is this it? Did we miss something?"

"This does look like a dead end, doesn't it?" Smith asked as he studied the wall closely.

"Maybe Bahai sent us to the wrong pyramid," Iris gulped. "Damn!"

"Oh, well," Sharon said as she chuckled oddly. "I guess that means we can turn around and leave, huh? Heh heh heh..."

"Wait a minute..." Smith said as he looked at the wall closely. "There's something printed here..."

"Hmm?" Iris asked. "What do you mean, professor?"

"Look," Smith said as he rubbed some sand off of the wall. Several strange pictures appeared on the stone surface.

"Uh... Looks like a scribble pad," Sharon observed nervously.

"Hold the phone!" Darren exclaimed. "Those are heiroglyphs! Something's written here in Ancient Egyptian."

"Who here can read this stuff?" Smith asked.

"Sorry," Iris said. "My lingual database doesn't have those."

Everyone glanced at Sharon, who was nervously shifting her weight and looking down. "Well, Sharon?" Smith asked.

"Huh? Oh, um, uh, I can't read it either," she said quickly.

"Oh, come on, Sharon," Darren argued. "I saw you memorizing this stuff at the museum's exhibit!"

"Wait a minute; Sharon's scared of the mummies, but she memorized Egyptian heiroglyphs?" Iris asked.

"I liked the pictures," Sharon mumbled.

"Please, Sharon?" Darren asked. "We need to get in here."

"Ummm..." she said. "But what about the mummies and stuff?"

"Give me a break!" Smith retorted. "There're no such things! At least, not here."

"What makes you so sure?" she retorted. "Have you got a mummy-detecting machine you haven't told me about?"

"Look, Sharon," Darren said. "Iris needs your help. Won't you do it, for her, at least?"

"...Well, OK... Just this once," she sighed crossly. She walked up to the wall and eyed the pictures. "OK, umm... 'Lean on me when you're not strong, and I'll be your friend and help you carry on,'" she read.

"What?!" Smith asked. "Sharon, those are song lyrics!"

"Yes, that doesn't make any sense!" Iris muttered as she put her back to the wall and folded her arms. Suddenly, the wall behind her rumbled backwards until a doorway appeared.

"...Huh?" Darren asked.

"...Oh! Look!" Smith said as he pointed to where Iris had been leaning; a heiroglyph depicting a beautiful-looking woman was painted there. "That must be a portrait of the person buried here. That's what the heiroglyphs meant! Nice going, you two!"

"Great!" Iris said happily. "Let's go!"

"Wonderful," Sharon mumbled as she brought up the rear of the party. "Why did I have to be such a softy?..."

Just as the party started in towards the entrance, an armed Reploid sentry leaped around the corner. "Hey, who're you guys?!" he snarled, training his gun on the group.

"GYAAAAHHHH!!!" Sharon screamed, instinctively whirling around and kicking the guard's head off. The body crumpled to the ground and sparked silently.

"I think we should worry more about the live dangers," Darren said. "This guy must've been with the bandits."

"I hope we took him down before he called for reinforcements," Smith said. "I don't feel well when I'm being targeted by plasma cannons."

"So what?!" Iris asked, making a defiant fist. "We'll stop them all, and make 'em give us the chip!"

"Iris, we can't be so reckless," Darren cautioned. "There's way more of them than there are of us..."

"You're such a worrywart!" Iris grumbled. "Sharon and I can take them on while the professor and you search."

"All right, but we really should tread cautiously," Smith said. "Now, let's go further in."

"Great..." Sharon gulped.

The party moved into a long maze of heiroglyph-decorated hallways. "Why'd they have to build this place like a labyrinth?" Darren grumbled as they moved. "It makes getting around practically impossible."

"That's why," Smith pointed out. "The Egyptians didn't want anyone getting in and swiping the treasure, so..."

"Well, it doesn't exactly work, does it?" Iris answered. "The bandits got in, didn't they?"

"Speaking of which..." Darren hissed, suddenly stopping and motioning for silence. The sound of approaching footsteps echoed from around the next corner.

"Uh-oh," Smith gulped, looking around quick for some way to hide. There weren't any side routes or tunnels in the hallway; just some sarcophagi built into the walls.

"What do we do now?" Sharon asked.

"We should sneak up on the guard and pump him for info," Iris said.

"But how do we sneak up on him? He's headed right for us!" Sharon replied.

Smith took another look at the coffins embedded in the rock. "I have an idea, but it won't be pretty, " he said. "Hurry up!"

A few moments later, two sentries rounded the corner and looked around. "I could have sworn I heard voices," the first one said.

"I sure wish the boss had chosen a different hideout," the second replied. "This place gives me the creeps."

"Well, there's nobody here..." the first said as he looked around quick. "Let's get back to our post, huh?"

As soon as the guards turned away, the wall coffins flew open and the party leaped out. Iris clubbed the second guard out cold and slammed the first one into the wall.

"Nice going, Iris!" Smith said. "My plan worked perfectly!"

"A little disturbing, but effective," Darren grumbled as he made a face and shut his coffin. "Uh... Where's Sharon?"

"AAAAAHHHHH!!!" Sharon screamed as she catapulted out of her sarcophogus and charged around the hallway with a rotting mummy clinging to her back. "GETITOFFGETITOFFGETITOFF!!!" she screeched.

"Aww, geez," Darren gulped, running up and pulling the piggybacking carcass off of her. "I guess you stood a bit too far back in there," he said as she wheezed on the floor.

"OK, now," Iris said as she held a strong grip on the guard. "Where's your stash? Talk!"

"Stash?" the guard asked. "Look, lady, I don't know what you've heard, but we only steal technology!"

"That's what I'm talking about!" Iris retorted with an exasperated sigh.

"OK, OK, I'll talk," the sentry choked. "All the stolen junk is hidden in the lower floors. You'll have to find the trap door to get there, though."

"And where's that?" Iris asked, giving the guard another shake.

"Agh! It's in the boss's room!" the guard hacked. "Heh... But you're never gonna get past him!"

"Thanks," Iris said as she dropped the guard and bopped him unconscious with the end of her Z-Saber. "C'mon guys, let's find their boss!" She turned and charged down the corridor.

"Iris..." Darren started to warn, but she was already out of earshot. He gave a sad sigh and ran after her.

Sharon was still sitting on the ground with wide eyes and rapid breathing. "That mummy really gave you a scare, huh?" Smith asked.

"Uh-huh..." Sharon panted. "Whew... But I think I'm better now."

"That's good," Smith said. "Here, let me help you up."

"Thanks," Sharon said as she reached up and grabbed a withered-feeling hand. With one tug, the hand crumbled into dust, and she screamed in horror again.

Smith peered down and grinned as he shoved the mummy corpse aside. "Sorry, I couldn't resist," he chuckled.

"Ooh, you are SO gonna get it when we get home..." she fumed as she got up and followed Darren.

The party raced down the hall until they came to a long, wide, empty room. "Hmm... What could be here?" Smith asked as he glanced around.

"It looks pretty empty," Iris said. "I guess they forgot to decorate this room."

"Hang on," Darren said as he looked at the left wall and saw a scroll of paper wedged in a hole. He gently pulled the papyrus out and looked it over. "This looks like a map," he concluded.

"A map?" Sharon asked. "What for?"

"Well, it looks a lot like this room," Darren replied. "I don't know why they'd make a map of this place, though..." He turned and started out into the room's wide space.

"What would a map be doing in here?" Iris asked as Darren walked.

"It could tell how to avoid any-" Smith started.

Suddenly, a row of sharp spears thrust out of the floor right behind Darren and plunged into the ceiling.

"...Booby traps," Smith finished.

"Darren's in big trouble!" Sharon gasped.

"Lemme see..." Darren said as he eyed the map and walked at the same time. "I guess I'm holding it the right way, but maybe..."

He turned the map sideways and veered left just as a giant ball of fire seared the ground on his right.

"Or is it this way?" he said as he rotated the map and took a step forward just as the floor and ceiling blocks smashed together.

"...Oh, silly me, I've got the whole thing turned the wrong way," he chuckled as he flipped the papyrus over and missed falling into an opening pit of cobras.

Just then, he stumbled and fell on his face. "Agh! Man, I am so dang clumsy!" he growled as he got back up and turned around. "I don't know why they made a map of this room," he called to his friends. "Seems safe to me!"

Iris, Sharon and Professor Smith just stared with wide eyes and open mouths.

"...What?" he asked.

* * *

Through turn after twist, Iris and her friends raced through the ancient maze, disarming sentries that challenged them along the way. Finally, when all direction was lost and just about all patience gone, they arrived at an strangely-decorated door. While it had heiroglyphics scrawled all over it, a large, blue R stamped in its center looked out of place.

"That's a weird heiroglyph," Sharon said. "I've never seen it before..."

Iris eyed the symbol and her face lit up. "Agh!" she cried. "That's not a heiroglyph! That's the insignia for Repliforce!"

"Repliforce?" Darren asked. "The military group you used to work with?..."

"This is very odd..." Smith said. "Be ready for anything."

With a mighty push, Iris and her friends barged through the door and came face-to-face with about twenty bandits.

"OK, who's the boss?" Smith huffed as he looked through the crowd. "Heh! Always wanted to say that..."

"Well, well, well..." a gravelly voice chuckled. "You must be pretty clever to find your way here."

Iris had heard the voice before. "That voice sounds really familiar..." she said, scratching her chin. "Where have I heard it before?"

A red owl Reploid wearing a distinguished military uniform made his way out of the crowd. He chuckled as he eyed the party. Just then, his expression changed from mad to surprise. "Well, if it isn't Iris. How have you been?" he asked.

"...Storm Owl?!" Iris asked suddenly.

"Who's he?" Darren asked.

"Storm Owl used to watch me while Colonel was off on Repliforce missions," she explained. "I guess you could call him my old babysitter."

"Wasn't he a prominent Repliforce officer, too?" Sharon asked.

"Indeed I was, and I will be again!" Owl corrected. "With my employer's backing, soon Repliforce will rise from the ashes, and I'll resume command of my flying brigade!"

"But Storm Owl, why are you doing this?" Smith asked.

"My master told me that if I can gather a lot of technology, he would fund my Repliforce rebuilding plan," Storm Owl replied. "I'll build a new base and restart the entire militia to protect and serve again. I just need a few more pieces, and then I can take to the skies again!"

"So, you're stealing?" Iris asked. "That's funny; I didn't take you for someone who would do that."

"I do what I must if it means getting Repliforce back on its feet," Owl replied. "Why don't you help me? I'd be glad to reinstate you."

"I don't think so," she answered, frowning. "Not if it means becoming a bandit like you!"

Storm Owl fumed. "I didn't expect any other response from you," he said. "To tell you the truth, I don't particularly care for this line of work... We take what others have worked so hard to make, and we hide underground like cowardly rodents... But if it means rebuilding Repliforce, I'll do it without question!"

"You know, I came here to find a computer chip," she said. "But now I'm also going to knock some sense into you! Can't you hear yourself? You're just a puppet for whoever your boss is!"

"Trust me, whoever you're working for, it's not worth all this," Smith grumbled.

"If you don't agree with me, then I don't have much choice," Storm Owl said as he motioned for his lackeys to all back away. "I'm also under orders to bring you in, Iris! So, all of you, get ready!"

"You're actually going to fight us?" Iris asked crossly.

"Finally, a little combat to get my mind off the mummies," Sharon chuckled as she cracked her knuckles and moved to Iris's side.

"It'll be interesting to fight against you, Iris," Storm Owl said. "But don't think I'll go easy on you!"

"Likewise," Iris growled, readying her I-Buster.

Storm Owl lunged at Iris and knocked her flat. Sharon charged at him with her S-Buster blazing, but he slapped her with his wings and kicked her away. Iris got up and shot at him several times, but he flew around each burst and crashed into her like a smart bomb.

"Oww... Man, you're tough..." Sharon grunted as she got up.

"I've had plenty of time to train," he gloated. "Have you had enough?"

"Not at all!" Sharon growled. Just then, her armor flashed and turned grayish-green. "What the heck?!" she asked.

"Oh!" Darren exclaimed. "That must be whatever power you got from beating Launch Octopus! Use it, Sharon!"

Sharon nodded and aimed at the big bird. "OK, let's see what we've got!" she said. She fired the gun and a long, red tentacle shot out and wrapped around him.

"Agh! Hey!!!" Storm Owl growled as he struggled to free himself.

"...OK..." Sharon gulped. "This is a little disturbing..." She flicked the tenacle and sent Storm Owl spinning off into a wall. "...But who's complaining?" she concluded.

"Thanks, Sharon!" Iris said as her armor became pink and green. "My turn! Silk Shot!" She fired a huge web of silky gunk that pinned Storm Owl to the ground. "I don't want to fight you, Storm Owl!" she said. "Come on, let's end this!"

"You bet I will!" Storm Owl grunted as he flapped his wings and broke the binding threads. "We may be old friends, but I've got orders! And I won't let Repliforce stay defeated! Now!..."

"No, wait!" Iris pleaded. "Come on! Stop!!!"

Storm Owl leaped forward and pointed at the floor beneath the party. Instantly a freak windstorm started up and blew them across the room. "Owww..." Sharon groaned as she forced herself to stand up. "Nasty!..."

"Now, then," Storm Owl said as he came up behind Iris. "One more blow to silence you!"

"I wouldn't do that, Storm," she warned as she got up with her back against the wall.

"Orders are orders!" Storm Owl retorted as he pointed at Iris. "Double Cyclone!!!"

Storm Owl's finger shot a fast-moving blast of sharp wind right at Iris, but at the last second Iris leaped away, and it smashed a huge hole in the wall. Instantly the entire room shook violently.

"What... What's happening?!" Storm Owl asked as he looked around nervously. Suddenly, a huge chunk of the ceiling crashed down right beside him. Several more chunks smashed to the ground, crushing a few of the bandits in the process.

"Ahh!!!" Smith cried as he ran to a corner and curled up. Darren ran too, but stumbled and fell just as a gigantic slab buried itself in the corner he was running for. Iris and Sharon stood their ground, blasting any pieces that fell towards them.

After an awful thirty seconds, the quaking stopped. The room was a mess; shattered ceiling lay everywhere, and everyone left was looking about in a daze.

"If you use your wind attacks in here, they'll collapse the pyramid," Sharon said quickly. "What were you thinking, man?!"

"Good Lord..." Storm Owl said as he looked around at the smashed bodies of his soldiers. "What WAS I thinking?"

"C'mon, Storm," Iris pressed. "Go on like this and the pyramid isn't the only thing that'll cave in on you."

Storm Owl hung his head in thought for a moment. "But I have nothing to rebuild Repliforce with," he said. "What shall I do?"

"I have an idea," Smith said as he walked over to Storm Owl and wrote down Dr. Bahai's address on a slip of paper. "Go and see this man; he can find your men and you some honest work so you can restart your army the right way."

Storm Owl started to take the paper, but hesitated. "My boss will know that I didn't defeat you, and he'll deal with me harshly," he said.

"So just keep a low profile," Darren said. "If he can't find you, he can't deal with you. Right?"

"Yes, but it wouldn't be very convincing," Owl replied. He thought for another moment, then opened up his arm cannon and handed Iris a small chip. "Take this," he said. "It's my weapon, the Double Cyclone. My boss would think me destroyed if you have it."

Iris took the chip and stuck it in her own cannon, and her armor turned green and yellow. "Wonderful!" she said happily.

"We will take our leave now," Storm Owl said as he motioned for his remaining soldiers to leave. "The path to the stolen materials is in the northwest corner. Goodbye, and good luck." With that, he turned and stalked out of the room.

"Well, that had to be the easiest Maverick fight yet," Smith chuckled.

"OK, we're wasting time," Iris said as she ran to the northwest corner and stomped on the floor stones. Sure enough, one of them slid away and revealed a flight of steps. "Let's find that chip!"

"Oh, great," Darren said. "For a minute there, I thought we had the old Iris back..."

"Well, we'd better head down," Sharon said. "The sooner we're out of here, the better."

Everyone quickly followed Iris down into a low-ceilinged, wide room. Huge piles of machines and circuitry were strewn all around. One odd, mirror-like device was set up on the far side of the room.

"Man, this is a freakin' spider hole," Sharon grunted as she looked around.

"Let's start looking for that chip," Smith said as he walked to a pile of scrap and started rooting through it.

"(SIGH) All right..." Darren sighed as he chose another pile.

"Thanks, guys! I'll look over here," Iris said as she walked up to the mirror machine and looked around.

After five minutes of searching, everybody turned up with nothing. "I guess there wasn't a chip here," Smith said. "How disappointing..."

"Dammit, you mean I had the snot scared out of me for nothing?!" Sharon fumed. "That does it! I'm going home!!!"

"No, wait!" Iris panted. "There's GOT to be a chip here! There just HAS to be!"

"Iris..." Darren said.

Iris quickly looked over at the mirror machine. "Maybe there's one in there!" she said as she ran to the machine and started pulling at its controls. "Let's pull it apart and look!"

"Uh, Iris, that could be dangerous," Smith warned. "I've never seen something like it before..."

"Iris! Stop!" Darren pleaded.

"Almost got it!..." Iris gasped as she tugged hard. The control panel moved out slightly. "Yeah!" she said. "OK, now I have to yank it out a little more..."

Just then, the mirror glowed bright red, and yellow sparks swirled around its glass.

"Iris! Get away!!!" Darren yelled.

"Something's happening!" Smith exclaimed.

"I don't even wanna know..." Sharon gulped.

"...Huh?" Iris asked as she looked over at the mirror. Suddenly there was a bright flash, and she flew backwards into Darren. Slowly, a red-armored foot emerged from the mirror, followed by an arm, and then an entire figure.

"Holey moley..." Smith gasped.

The mirror had produced a Reploid coated head to toe in red armor. One of his arms had a huge gun attached to it, and his face was marked with war paint and a cruel sneer.

"Finally, I made it through!" he said energetically. "So, they were right!"

"Who the heck are you?!" Sharon growled.

"Who am I?" the Reploid chuckled. "Well, that shows how advanced this place is! I'm Fefnir, one of the Guardians of Master X, the head of Neo Arcadia!"

"Fefnir? Master X? Neo...?" Iris asked. "What..."

Fefnir looked around and grinned sadistically. "Wait'll I tell the others that the Dimension Warp works!" he said. "They'll be so surprised!"

"Dimension Warp?..." Smith asked. "Woah! So... Are you from another plane of existance?!"

"Whatever you say, pal," Fefnir snorted. "All I know is now Neo Arcadia's got plenty of room to expand!"

"Neo Arcadia?" Darren asked. "What's that?"

"Neo Arcadia's the utopia that Master X founded when all the Mavericks had been offed," Fefnir replied. "It was built so lazy humans like you would be safe if the Mavericks ever came back. But you never know who could be a Maverick, can ya? So, we basically take down anyone who goes against us. So, just to gauge what this world is like, are you gonna pledge allegience to Neo Arcadia, or not?"

Everyone glanced at each other, then frowned at Fefnir. "No sale, Fefnir," Iris said. "And if Master X and his soldiers are as bullying as you, then Neo Arcadia must not be a very nice place!"

"So, that's how it's gonna be, eh?" Fefnir threatened. "I guess we'll have to do this my favorite way: the HARD way!"

Fefnir trained his gun on a pile of scrap and launched a giant fireball. The clutter exploded into dust. Iris and her friends shielded their eyes from the blast, then looked at the smoldering pile in horror.

"Oh, my God..." Sharon gasped. "He's insane!"

"What have I done?..." Iris whispered. Just then, she frowned defiantly. "Come on, Sharon, let's take this guy!" she growled. "We can't let him leave!"

"Iris, are you crazy?!" Sharon exclaimed. "You saw what he did to that scrap!"

"That's exactly why we can't let him get outside!" Iris said. "Now COME ON!"

"...Good point," Sharon muttered as she joined Iris in charging Fefnir.

"So, NOW you put up a fight, huh?" Fefnir laughed. "Cute! The little girls think they can stop me!"

Iris switched to her Silk Shot weapon and fired a glob of gunk, and Sharon launched several volleys from her S-Buster. Fefnir swung his fist to deflect the shots and then ignited the goo with a shot of his own. He charged forward, grabbed Iris and Sharon and lifted them into the air.

"Agh!" Iris cried.

"Hey, lemme go! Lemme go!" Sharon snarled.

"So, open aggression towards Neo Arcadia, huh?" Fefnir cackled. "That's grounds for execution, sweethearts!"

Darren nervously watched Iris and Sharon writhe for a few moments, then set his jaw and scowled at Fefnir. He very quickly bent down and picked up a chunk of metal. "Nobody's executing anyone!" he yelled, angrily pitching it.

It hit a surprised Fefnir in the head, and he turned on Darren, dropping Iris and Sharon. "So, you wanna throw down too, huh?" he laughed.

"Darren! What're you doing?!" Smith asked.

"You guys get out of here, now!" Darren shouted. "I have an idea of how to send him back!"

"Darren, are you nuts?!" Sharon yelled. "He'll rip through you like a knife through butter!"

"Maybe, but I have to get rid of him!" Darren said. "Hurry and go!"

Iris looked at Darren strangely. "What're you saying, Darren?!" she asked in shock.

"No time!" Darren huffed, turning and giving her a strong shove towards the stairs. "GO!!!"

"Darren, no, wait!!!" Iris pleaded as she tried to run back, but Smith and Sharon grabbed her.

"Are you sure you'll be fine?" Smith asked.

"I'll sure try to be," Darren replied. "Now, get out of the pyramid! Hurry!"

Sharon and Professor Smith dragged a kicking and yelling Iris up the stairs and vanished. Darren bit his lip and turned back to Fefnir. "Well, you've got some attitude to ya, human," Fefnir laughed. "I like you!"

"I don't know where you're from or why you're here, but I can't let you stay," Darren growled.

"Heh! Fine, then!" Fefnir laughed as he targeted Darren. "Come and get me!!!"

Fefnir fired a giant fireball, but Darren leaped away and it blew a hole in the far wall. The pyramid quaked angrily.

"Well, well, well!" Fefnir said as he looked at a face-down Darren. "No human's ever dodged my fireballs... Congratulations! But it ain't gonna happen again!"

Darren glanced between Fefnir and the glowing mirror. "(I've got to pull the plug on that dimension warp thing...)" he thought. "(Maybe that'll send Fefnir away...)"

"I'm s'posed to protect humans, as a rule," Fefnir chuckled as he locked on to Darren again. "But ya know what?" He squeezed the trigger. "I CAN'T STAND 'EM!!!"

Darren got up and moved away, but the blast's aftershock sent him flying across the room. Again the pyramid shook violently. Flecks of dust floated down from the ceiling, but neither Fefnir or Darren cared.

"Wow, you are one lucky little brat; you know that?!" Fefnir said, growing red with fury. "OK, third time's a charm!!!"

"Oh, geez..." Darren gulped as he staggered to his feet and tried to run.

Fefnir roared and shot an even bigger fireball. Darren tried to run, but stumbled and fell on his face. The fireball whizzed over him and tore out the entire rear wall, and the pyramid wavered and shook like a gelatin dessert. "Uh-oh..." Fefnir said, suddenly aware of the problem. "Something tells me that was bad!"

"Well, you won't be around to know!" Darren said as he staggered to his feet and ran to the mirror machine. He tried hitting several of the buttons, but nothing happened.

"Tryin' to send me back, huh?!" Fefnir said as he ran over to Darren and put his gun to the young man's head. "Don't even try!"

"(These buttons aren't working, and he's gonna kill me, and this place is gonna collapse any moment...)" Darren thought as sweat poured down his face. "(What am I gonna do, what am I gonna do...)"

"You sure gave me a runaround, but playtime's over!" Fefnir panted as he started to pull the trigger. "So long, sucker!"

"This had better work!!!" Darren yelled, pulling as hard as he could and wrenching the entire control panel out of the machine. Instantly the mirror sparked and whirred, and its surface glowed blood red. Fefnir started glowing red, too.

"Hey, what the?!..." Fefnir yelled as a mysterious force dragged him across the floor towards the mirror. "No way!!! AAAAHHHHH!!!"

With one bright flash, Fefnir vanished back into the portal, which promptly dimmed and shut down.

"Phew..." Darren panted. "That... was close..."

Just then, a huge chunk of ceiling smashed down next to him and he remembered the other threat.

* * *

"Iris, quit squirming!!!" Sharon snarled as Smith, Iris and her ran out of the shaking pyramid.

"Darren's still in there!" Iris yelled. "I've gotta go back!"

"Well, then who's gonna come after you?!" Smith retorted.

Just then, the pyramid gave a loud, guttural roaring sound and collapsed in on itself. A mountain of dust and sand burst skyward and blotted out the sun.

"My God..." Smith gasped, his eyes wide with horror.

"Darren!!!" Sharon cried. "Oh, no!!!"

"DARREN!!!" Iris screamed. She quickly broke free of Sharon and Smith's grip and charged into the dust cloud. She frantically looked around, but all she could see was dust, sand and rubble. Madly, she got down on her knees and started pulling the stones up, thinking only of finding her friend.

"Iris, what're you doing?!" Sharon asked as Smith and she ran up.

"Shut up and help me dig!!!" she snapped. Sharon quickly knelt down and helped her move the huge blocks.

After a horrible fifteen minutes, the party ripped out one final stone. Beneath it lay Darren. His clothes were torn, his hair was a mess, and he was hacking up a mixture of blood and dust.

"Darren!!!" Iris exclaimed as she hauled him out of the tomb and held him in her arms. "Please, say something!" she begged.

Darren coughed a few more times, and then slowly forced one of his eyes open. "Oh... Iris..." he whispered. "I... I did it... I sent... Fefnir back..."

"Who cares about that?!" Iris snapped. "I'm just glad you're OK!!!"

"Ugh..." Darren coughed again, and some blood splattered onto Iris's clothing. "H-here..." He choked as he held up the control box for the dimension warp machine. "There... might be something... in here..."

Smith quietly nodded and took the shining box from the broken lad.

"Darren..." Iris said quietly.

"Heh... That's what you wanted, right?..." Darren chuckled. Just then, his face twitched in pain, and he hacked up some more blood. "Ugh... So tired... Must..." he wheezed as his eyes closed and his head slowly slumped over.

"Darren!" Iris gasped as she shook him, practically blind from the hot tears pouring down her cheeks. "No! NO!!! Darren, don't leave me, PLEASE!!! DARREN!!!"

* * *

Later that night, a grim party waited outside the Science Museum's medical room. Professor Krein stepped out and addressed them.

"He has severe tissue damage, massive internal bleeding and several broken bones, not to mention lungs full of sand... I'll have to operate right away. Keep clear, everyone," he said as he quickly turned and walked back into the room.

Everybody sat in the waiting room, the tension so thick it could have been cut with a chainsaw. Sharon paced back and forth, anxiously chewing her lip. Smith tried to read a book, but he soon gave up. Iris sat in the corner, unusually silent and miserable-looking.

Sharon sat down next to Iris and looked over. "You look awful," she remarked.

"He risked his life for me..." Iris whispered, turning the recovered control box over in her hands like a newborn. "...And after all I did to him..."

"What do you mean, Iris?" Sharon asked.

"After we got those other three chips, I got really excited that we would find the fouth one right away," she explained. "He tried to warn me, but I just wouldn't listen... I told him to find a location quick, and then I made us all go there as soon as possible... And I'm the one who activated that dimension warp thing... Now he's lying in that room, clinging to life by a thread... and it's all my fault..." Big wet tears rolled down her cheeks as she put her face in her hands. "I'm such a horrible friend..."

"Iris," Snake Man said. "Darren'll be okay. He's a klutz, but he's a really tough klutz."

"First my brother, then Zero... Now this..." Iris sniffled. "Why do I end up killing everyone I care about?..."

"Hey, that's not true!" Sharon said harshly. "Everybody makes mistakes. Darren will forgive you. Ya just... gotta be more careful from now on."

Iris sighed again and hung her head.

* * *

Several anxious hours later, Krein quietly returned to the waiting room. Everyone looked at him anxiously. "Give it to us straight, doc!" Sharon said. "Is he gonna be OK?!"

" ...Darren will be just fine," Krein said cheerfully. "The medicine I gave him will heal his wounds pretty quickly. A day of rest and he'll be fine."

Iris was overjoyed. "Oh, thank you, professor!" she cried happily. "Can I go and see him?"

"Certainly," Krein said. "Just be gentle."

Iris and the others ran into the operating room. Darren lay on the table covered by a blanket, and a nearby bag dripped something into a tube that went into his arm.

"...Darren?..." Iris asked quietly.

Darren opened his eyes and smiled tiredly at Iris. "Hey, Iris. What's up?" he asked with a weak chuckle.

"Good to see you again, D," Sharon said. "You almost made me pee my pants!... Almost."

"Thank goodness you're all right," Smith said. "I was afraid I was going to lose my omnitheater operator. Heh! Just kidding."

Iris was strangely quiet. "Iris? Are you OK?" Darren asked.

Iris looked at Darren, then smiled happily as warm tears gushed down her face. "Oh, Darren..." she cried as she grabbed him, hugged him tightly and nuzzled his cheek. "Don't you ever do that again! Do you hear me?! Oh, I was so worried... But you're OK... I'm so happy!..."

"Easy there, Iris! My stitches are still pretty loose," Darren chuckled, reassuringly rubbing her back.

"I've got some good news as well," Professor Olson said, coming into the room. "The control panel that Darren brought out of the pyramid DID contain a chip: the Omega chip. We can build the serum now!"

"All right!..." Darren said. "Now you can get Zero back, Iris. That's great! Doesn't that make you really happy?"

"Sure it does..." Iris said with a small blush. "But you know what? Zero isn't the only thing that makes me happy right now..."

Darren smiled brightly, and let Iris hug him again.


	7. On My Honor

**CHAPTER 7**

**ON MY HONOR**

The next day, everyone crowded around the lab table while Darren and Professor Olson pieced the four computer chips together.

"Are you sure you know what you're doing, Darren?" Sharon asked.

"Each chip has ridges that fit together with the others' like a jigsaw puzzle," Darren said as he flipped his safety mask up for a moment. "I'm pretty sure I'm doing this right."

"Besides," Olson said. "We won't weld them together until we're sure we have the right combination."

"How're you doing this morning, Darren?" Iris asked.

"I'm feeling really great, actually," Darren replied. "I'm almost totally healed!... Urgh... Except for my left side. That needs a bit longer."

"Anyway, we should be at this for a while longer, so you guys should take a break," Olson said. "You too, Darren."

"Yeah, we've been globetrotting for days," Smith said. "I think I'm ready to just sit back and watch some TV."

"I need to practice my martial arts," Sharon said as she threw a few punches. "I don't wanna get sloppy!"

"You guys go ahead," Iris said. "I'm just going to have a little quiet time."

"Suit yourself, Iris," Smith answered. "Hey, why don't you help Snake Man with his exhibit maintenance? That would be nice."

"Yeah, I guess that would be all right," Iris said as she grabbed a spare labcoat and started out. "Wanna come, Darren?"

"Ahh, why not?" Darren asked as he took another coat and joined Iris. "As long as I stay off ladders, I'll be fine."

The museum inhabitants merrily set to their activities, unaware that, on the rooftop of a nearby building, a hulky figure was looking in on them.

* * *

"So, Iris," Snake Man said as he inspected an Incan statue's head and dusted off the filthy areas. "I've heard you've been having a lot of adventures."

"Yeah, I have," Iris replied as she cleaned the statue's feet. "I've seen the new world and collected everything I need to get Zero back. Now all I need to do is find out where he is..."

"I bet we'll find out," Darren said as he polished the statue's torso. "In the history books I've read, he voluntarily sealed himself up somewhere... Didn't you say that your dream told you where he was?"

"X told me that Zero was in a tunnel past a bridge over a lava pool," Iris answered. "He didn't say where."

"Lava pool, eh?" Snake Man asked. "Well, there're only so many caves and ruins in the world with volcanic activity inside of them. That'll narrow your search significantly."

"'Your?'" Iris asked. "Snake Man, you're talking like this doesn't concern you."

"Well, I don't see how it would," Snake Man explained. "I mean, I don't know this Zero fellow, and you didn't ask me to come along with you before."

"Aww, sorry, Snake Man," Darren said. "I didn't realize that you minded."

"Don't worry about it," Snake Man muttered. "Besides, I got the whole museum fixed up; that's nothing to sneeze at, either."

"Well, from what I got from our talks, you seemed content to stay here," Iris said. "I thought you wouldn't have wanted to come."

"At first I probably would have turned down the offer, yes," Snake Man said as he scratched his head in thought. "But after seeing you guys going out to all sorts of places and getting to know each other better and all, I can't help but feel a little left out."

"Sorry about that, Snake; honestly," Darren apologized. "Well, to make it up to you, we'll help you with your entire rounds today."

"AND would you like to come with us to find Zero?" Iris asked.

Snake Man gave the two a stubborn look, but then grinned and laughed. "Ahh, how can I say no?" he chuckled. "You bet I'll come!... Well, providing the museum doesn't get smashed up again."

"Wonderful!" Iris said as she smiled warmly at Snake Man. "We'll be glad to have you along."

"It'll be good to get out for a bit," Snake Man replied. "But first, let's keep working. I noticed the Egyptian sarcophagi were looking absolutely horrible!"

* * *

"Hmmm..." Olson frowned as he delicately tried to piece the four chips together. "No... That's not it... Drat! This syrum is very hard to assemble."

"Oh, keep at it," Smith replied as he typed away at his computer. "I bet you'll figure it out sooner or later."

"There're so many different ridges on each cube..." Olson growled. "I don't even know what this thing is supposed to look like! It's like one big cube puzzle or something..."

"I just got a letter from Dr. Bahai," Smith said. "Looks like he's put Storm Owl and his Repliforce followers to work excavating a new ruin. Good; I knew he'd find something for them to do."

"Cube puzzle..." Olson grumbled. "Cube puzzle... Cube..."

Smith sighed heavily. "This is getting way too dangerous," Smith said. "Ever since I revived Iris, everyone's been trying to either destroy or capture her..."

"Cube puzzle?..." Olson asked himself. "Hmm..."

"I'm glad that Iris is happy and enjoying herself," Smith said as he sat back in his chair and stared at the ceiling. "But all we've done is fight. I brought her into the world again so she could have a peaceful and happy life... But it doesn't look like that'll happen..."

"Cube puzzle..." Olson repeated. "Cube puzzle?"

"This all can't just be a coincidence..." Smith growled as he started typing on his machine. "Someone is trying to hurt Iris... And I think I have a pretty good clue-"

"EUREKA!!!" Olson yelled as he leaped from his chair and spread his arms in victory. Smith tumbled out of his chair in surprise, then glared up at him. "Sorry," Olson apologized. "I've always wanted to say that."

* * *

"There we go!" Snake Man said as he dropped his squeegee into a bucket of water and climbed down his ladder. "If that's not a clean window, I don't know what is!"

"Well, that's everything, right?" Darren asked. Iris and he had been helping Snake Man with his chores throughout the museum since the morning, and now the sky was just beginning to turn orange.

"Yep," Snake Man said. "Another day's work well done. Thanks to you guys, I got it all finished before dinner, too. Thanks!"

"You really love working here, don't you, Snake Man?" Iris asked.

"You bet!" Snake Man replied with a smile. "But still, I would like to get out and see the world... You know, Iris, after you guys left on your adventure, I started thinking... You're out there, doing what you want to do, right?"

"Well, I want to find Zero..." Iris answered. "...I suppose you could say that I'm doing that, yes."

"Well, I made an important decision," Snake Man said. "I want to become... an archaeologist."

"An archaeologist?" Darren asked.

"Yeah!" Snake Man replied. "That way, I wouldn't just get to be around old artifacts; I'd get to actually FIND them! That's what I'm gonna do, yessir!"

"That's really neat, Snake Man," Iris said with a smile. "I hope you can become one."

"Well, I'll need plenty of money for the education, and I'm still next door to broke, so I'll be here a while longer," Snake Man grinned. "Until then, I'd be happy to help you guys out."

"Trust me, Snake Man, you will," Iris said. "You're definitely coming with us next time; that's a promise."

"Great," Snake Man chuckled. "Oh, drat, I remembered one last chore we should do... Come on."

Iris and Darren looked at each other in confusion, then turned and followed Snake Man.

* * *

Sharon inhaled deeply, then with a sharp yell flew through the air, and a cement block was smashed to dust as if it were styrofoam. She then threw fifty rapid-fire punches into a punching bag and knocked it clear across the room. Finally, she jumped above a training dummy, whipped out her arm cannon and lashed a tough, red tentacle straight through the doll. She landed on her feet, wiped the sweat off her brow and laughed with satisfaction.

"Whew..." she panted as she grabbed a glass of water from a nearby cooler. "I think I've integrated that into my training pretty nicely."

"Hey, that was nice," Professor Smith's voice broke in on Sharon's thoughts. Sharon whirled around to see him standing in the doorway. "I thought I'd find you down here. Good thing I got the museum board to set up this training room for its security guards." He turned and glanced at the tentacle hanging from Sharon's arm cannon. "Iris told me that you defeated Launch Octopus when we were in Australia. That's from him, I'm guessing."

"Really?" Sharon asked as she smiled at her arm cannon. "I guess he was useful after all."

"From the look of it, I'd say you have his Sonic Tentacle weapon," Smith commented. "Use it well."

"You bet, prof!" Sharon chuckled.

"Good..." Smith said with a half-hearted sigh.

"Huh?" Sharon asked. "Hey, prof, you sound kinda down. What's going on?"

"Hmm?" Smith asked. "Oh. Sorry, Sharon; I've just had a lot on my mind lately. I'm starting to get an idea of what's behind all this Maverick activity..."

"What do you mean?" Sharon asked.

"All the Mavericks we faced were in the same ruins as the chips," Smith said as he scratched his stubble and paced. "They've all been after both the chips and Iris... It's exactly what he would do."

"'He?'" Sharon asked. "'He' who?"

"Yes, they're certainly all connected to him," Smith muttered, seeming not to hear Sharon's question. "I'm sure of it! And sooner or later..."

"Prof, you're really creepin' me out, here!" Sharon huffed. "WHO are you talking about?!"

Smith opened his mouth to answer, but suddenly the entire building shook violently. "What the?!" Smith gasped as he whipped around and stared out of the museum's front windows. For a brief moment, he saw a dull pink blur zipping upwards, but then it was gone.

"Prof, what's goin' on?" Sharon asked as she glanced around crossly.

"I don't know, but I think Iris is in danger!" Smith said as he grabbed Sharon and raced out of the room. "Come on! We have to find her!"

* * *

"Clean the vents?!" Darren asked as he looked around. Iris, Snake Man and he stood on the museum roof, looking out over downtown St. Paul.

"Yep," Snake Man replied. "These vents have to be cleaned to keep good ventilation. So, after I'm done here, I'll be done for the day." He walked over to the largest vent and peered inside.

"Oh, boy..." Iris sighed as she hugged herself for warmth. "It's pretty chilly up here..."

"Sometimes I wish they wouldn't keep the city in winter all the time," Darren muttered as he shoved something large and fuzzy at Iris. "Here, have a coat."

"Thanks, Darren," Iris said as she donned the warm garment. "I feel warmer already."

"Hmm..." Snake Man said as he looked at Darren and Iris. "That's weird..."

"What's up, Snake Man?" Iris asked.

"Well," Snake Man chuckled embarrassedly. "It looks like there's something clogging this vent, but my arms are too thick to reach in and get it."

"Really?" Iris asked. "That's a shame... Here, let me help; my arms are thinner."

Iris walked over to the vent, lean in and groped around. Almost instantly her fingers closed around something long and crinkly. "Hey, I've got it!" she cried as she tugged hard and dislodged the object.

"Hey, great!" Snake Man said.

"What was it?" Darren asked.

Iris looked at the object; it was a roll of weathered, thick, blue paper tied with a string. "What in the world?..." she asked as she undid the string and opened the roll. Almost immediately, her eyes widened in amazement.

"Woah!" Darren exclaimed as he peeked over Iris's shoulder. "Are those what I think they are?!"

Iris read the large print on the paper: OFFICIAL MAVERICK HUNTER ZERO Z-SABER SCHEMATIC.

"The schematics for Zero's sword..." Iris whispered as she pulled the weapon out and held it to the paper.

"I thought Zero's blade was one-of-a-kind," Darren said. "...It looks like someone managed to analyze it and write up a report."

"Yeah!" Snake Man chuckled. "Cool, huh?"

"What?" Iris asked. "You knew about this, Snake Man?"

"When I was repairing the whole you made in Smith's lab, I found that near where you found the Z-Saber," Snake Man pointed out. "Isn't that neat? I don't know what you'd do with it, but at least we have it."

"Yeah, that's really cool!" Darren laughed. "Thanks a bunch, Snake Man!"

"Well, I wasn't kidding about cleaning the vents, but if you're cold, you can go back down now," Snake Man said. "I can take it from here."

"Good," Iris said. "I'm freezing! C'mon, Darren..."

Suddenly, everyone heard a loud rumbling, and the building started to shake. "Agh! What's going on?!" Darren asked as he nervously looked around.

"I don't know... but..." Iris gulped. "I don't like it..."

Suddenly, a huge, rolling, pink ball flew up from the building side and smashed onto the roof. It stopped spinning and uncurled to reveal a solemn-looking armadillo Reploid with a gigantic suit of armor.

"What the?!" Iris asked.

"Hey, that isn't just going to buff out!" Snake Man yelled.

"You are Iris Thorne?" the Reploid asked Iris.

"Who are you, and what do you want?" Iris asked with a frown.

"I am Armored Armadillo," Armored Armadillo said with a polite nod. "As for what I want, I want what everyone else wants. So... kindly relinquish the chips you have gathered, and come with me."

"No way!" Darren growled as he balled up his fists. "There's no way you're taking Iris! Agh!" He snarled and clutched at his side.

"Easy, Darren," Snake Man said as he put a hand on Darren's shoulder. "You're still pretty beat up."

"What's going on?" Iris asked. "Why are all sorts of Reploids trying to catch me?"

"The master requires your assistance," Armadillo replied. "With what, I do not know. But if you don't cooperate, I'm under orders to take you in however I need to."

"Well, you seem like a nice enough guy..." Iris said. "I'm not going to go with you, though. Do you really need to fight?"

"The master has commanded it, so I shall I do it," Armadillo said solemnly. "Obedience brings victory, and victory brings honor. Nothing you can say will deter me."

"I was afraid of that..." Iris sighed sadly. "Why do I always have to fight?..."

"We shall have a one-on-one duel, according to the code of the Samurai," Armored Armadillo said as he produced a laser-bladed katana from somewhere in his shell. "I know that you have a sword. I must request that you use only it."

"Only my Z-Saber?" Iris asked as she looked down at the weapon. "But... I haven't had a lot of practice with it..."

"Use the Z-Saber..." Armadillo said as a compartment on his forehead snapped open and a gun popped out and aimed at Darren and Snake Man. "...Otherwise, you shall make your friends... very unhappy."

"Aww, geez, that's below the belt!" Snake Man huffed angrily.

"Do what you think is best, Iris," Darren said as he glanced at Iris. "We'll go with it."

Iris gave Darren and Snake Man a worried glance, then activated her Z-Saber. "All right, we'll do this your way," she said.

"Good," Armadillo said as a faint smile pursed his mouth and he raised his katana. "Whomever draws first blood wins the duel. Are you ready? Prepare yourself!"

Armored Armadillo charged across the roof and lunged. Iris blocked his attack and staggered backwards, panting nervously. "You are afraid?" Armadillo asked as he glared stonily at Iris. "You should be. If you don't wish to continue, I'll cut you with one stroke. You had enough honor to accept my challenge, after all."

"(What've I gotten myself into?!)" Iris thought. "(I don't know how to duel like this! There's no way I'll win!... But... That attack he did looked kind of familiar... Maybe...)"

Armadillo lunged forward with a series of stabs and swipes, driving Iris to the roof's edge, where they clashed in a deadlock. "You aren't very skilled with your blade..." he growled. "Perhaps I should have finished you right away."

Iris looked at Armadillo with determined eyes. "I've just gotten started!" she declared as she gathered up her strength, shoved Armadillo away and thrust at him until they were on the center of the rooftop again.

"So, you may have skill after all," Armadillo said as the blades clashed again.

"I've watched the best," Iris replied as she kept the deadlock.

"Oh?" Armadillo asked. "Perhaps there is more than that..."

"Hmm?" Iris asked as she loosened her grip and eyed Armored Armadillo questioningly.

Armadillo grinned darkly and gave Iris a sharp shove. She crashed to the ground, rolled a few meters and struggled to her knees. "Never let your guard down," he said as he advanced on Iris with his katana raised.

"Ooohhh..." Iris swooned as she staggered to her feet and rubbed the impacted spot. "That was a pretty low blow..." she grunted.

"I did it with the sword, which makes it an honorable move," Armadillo replied.

"You're really big on honor, aren't you?" Iris asked.

"My honor is my life," Armadillo said. "Without it, I am nothing."

"Kinda weird that you'd find honor in an unfair fight like this..." Iris said.

"There is great honor in fulfilling my master's requests," Armadillo replied. "My victory brings honor to him, and he gives honor to me."

"Yeah?..." Iris asked as she eyed Armadillo's katana. "Well, maybe you should get your honor from a different source!"

Iris rolled away when Armadillo stabbed at her and got to her feet. "Come on!" she said. "There's still plenty of fight left in me!"

"Hmm..." Armadillo said, genuinely impressed. "You have plenty of spirit; I'll give you that much. However..." He lunged at Iris again, and a tear opened in Iris's outfit.

"Agh!" Iris cried as she leaped backwards. Armadillo smiled coldly.

"My blade is so swift, you'll never see it approach," Armadillo said as he advanced again. "Perhaps you should surrender and lose with honor."

Iris frowned defiantly. She didn't want to lose to Armored Armadillo, but he was much more skilled than she was. How could she defeat him?

As Iris sat thinking, she started to feel strange; a warm, vibrant sensation welled up in her stomach, and she slowly began to feel her confidence returning. She had watched her brother Colonel and Zero spar with their sabers many times, but now those observations were actually coming together and forming something great. Suddenly, in a flash, it came to her, and she rose to her feet.

"Hmm?" Armored Armadillo asked. "What's this?"

With a defiant cry that didn't sound like her own voice, Iris lifted the Z-Saber and flew at Armadillo. Armadillo ran at Iris with his own blade swinging, and a sparking electric clash split the cold air. Both combatants stood still where they landed.

"...What happened?!..." Darren asked.

"I can't watch!" Snake Man gulped.

Iris slowly turned and faced her friends with a kind smile. Her uniform, aside from the previous tear, was intact.

"Iris! You're OK!" Darren cheered happily.

Armored Armadillo emitted a small gasp, then fell to one knee as a small wound opened up on his chest and a drop of blood splashed on the icy stone roof. "I-impossible..." he choked. "I... I lost?..."

"Wow! You did it, Iris!!!" Snake Man cried. "You beat 'im!"

"Yeah..." Darren said. "But how did you do it?"

"I... I don't know," Iris said as she scratched her head. "I remember that I used to watch Colonel and Zero spar... Maybe I just picked something up from them."

"Well, whatever you picked up, it sure worked," Snake Man said. "Nice work."

Iris glanced over at Armored Armadillo, who was getting to his feet. She quickly motioned for Darren and Snake Man to get out of the way.

Armored Armadillo lumbered over and stared down at Iris. "You have defeated me," he stated.

"Yeah... I guess so," Iris replied.

Armadillo knelt before her and lowered his guise. "I offer you my head," he said.

"What?!" Iris exclaimed. "Are you crazy?! I'm not going to decapitate you!"

"So be it," Armadillo said as he raised his katana to his throat.

"...What are you doing?" Iris asked in alarm.

"To lose a battle is to lose honor," Armadillo said. "To retain my master's honor, I must perish... By your hand or mine, it doesn't matter."

"What?!" Iris exclaimed. "What kind of rule is that?!"

"It is in the code of the samurai," Armadillo replied. "To go against the code is the most horrific infraction a samurai can commit."

"But killing yourself just because you lost?" Darren asked. "That's not fair at all!"

"Fair or not, it is the code," Armadillo sighed. "I am prepared. It is time..."

"No..." Iris whispered. "Please, no more killing... I've seen enough."

"HOLD IT!!!"

Everyone turned to see Professor Smith and Sharon emerge from the service elevator. Armored Armadillo's eyes widened. "You..." he said.

"Armadillo! You know you don't have to do this!" Smith huffed angrily.

"Iris defeated me," Armadillo replied. "What other choice do I have? I must keep my master's honor intact."

"Your master's honor!" Smith snorted. "Your master doesn't have a shred of honor, and you know it! Why would you take your life for someone like him?!"

"He is the master," Armadillo replied. "I must obey."

"But if you know what he's doing is wrong, and you disagree with it, why go along with it?" Smith asked. "Wake up, Armadillo! You're not doing him any favors by killing yourself!"

Armored Armadillo gave Smith a thoughtful look, and after a tense silence, sheathed his katana. "I suppose you're right..." he said. "The master has brought nothing good upon the people... Perhaps I should not be so quick to defend him."

"Yeah..." Smith said as he smiled. "You're your own man, Armadillo. You should do what you want, not what he wants."

Armadillo nodded. "Yes... Now I understand..." he replied. He turned back to Iris and knelt again. "Thank you, Iris, for sparing me," he said.

"Err, don't mention it," Iris replied.

"Please, take this," Armadillo said as he opened a compartment in his arm, took out a small cube and handed it to Iris. "This is my strongest attack, Rolling Shield. Think of it as a prize for defeating me."

"Th-thanks," Iris said as she accepted the cube.

"And many thanks to you, old friend," Armadillo said as he turned to Smith. "Your words were always full of honor. Thank you for coming to me now."

"No problem," Smith said with a laugh.

"I don't get it," Darren said. "What's going on here?"

"A while ago, Armadillo and I worked for the same guy," Smith answered. "Of course, that was before I quit and joined the museum, but... Well, you get the picture."

_(Flashback)_

As the sun slowly set outside the office window, 33 year-old Professor Ross Smith sat poring over some papers and biting his lip in thought. Armored Armadillo stood in the corner, watching him work. "Are you certain about this?" Armadillo asked.

"I've been poring over these reports for the past twelve hours," Smith answered. "What the boss is doing is wrong. I won't allow it!"

"But the master has the final say in all projects," Armadillo said. "You cannot hope to defeat him here."

"Exactly," Smith said as he slapped on a tweed jacket and matching cap. "Someone's got to stop him... I'm gonna get to it before he can; that'll teach him to toy with this!"

"You are just going to leave?" Armadillo asked. "Such an act is worth great dishonor."

"Not in this case," Smith said as he tossed the papers to Armadillo. "Try reading 'em yourself."

Armadillo set the papers back down. "Mine is not to question the master," he replied. "Go if you must, though."

"All right," Smith said as he opened the office door. "See you around, Armored Armadillo."

The door slammed shut, and Armadillo was left alone in the dusk-filled office.

_(End Flashback)_

"Yes... Smith always treated me more like a friend than a servant," Armadillo said as he turned away. "Perhaps we shall meet again someday, friends. Until then, stay safe... The master will send others."

"Others?" Snake Man asked. "So, does that mean everyone who was after Iris worked for the same guy?"

Suddenly, the air split with high, psychotic laughter. "Huh?!" Sharon asked as she looked around. "What's goin' on?!"

"Hyeee hee hee heeee!!!" a voice cackled. "You're right, kid! We all work for the same guy!"

"No..." Armadillo gasped as he whirled around.

The air around the edge of the roof shimmered, and a shiny, green, lizard-like Reploid appeared. His long, red tongue flicked in and out, and his eyes darted to each person with malice. "I thought he'd screw up, so I tailed 'im here," the Reploid sneered.

"Sting Chameleon!" Armadillo growled.

"Another of 'the master's' employees, I'm guessing?" Darren gulped.

"Very perceptive!" Sting Chameleon laughed. "Well, unlike some blowhards, I don't care if the property's a bit damaged when I take it in. So get ready to bite it, Iris!"

"Oh, no you don't!" Snake Man declared. "Nobody's taking anyone!"

"Get lost and tell your master that we won't take this abuse any more," Smith growled.

"Oh? So, you, huh?" Chameleon chuckled. "Yeah, I heard about you... Get ready to pay for what you did, old fogey!"

"Old?!" Smith snarled angrily. "I'm only 35!!!"

"Shut up!" Chameleon laughed. In a flash, his iron tongue shot out like a bullet, flying straight towards Professor Smith.

"Professor!!!" Iris cried.

Suddenly, Sting Chameleon's tongue stopped dead. Everyone looked to see Armored Armadillo standing in front of Professor Smith, the tongue wrapped around his arm, and his katana blazing in the other. "I won't allow you to harm them," he stated coldly as he yanked Chameleon's tongue.

Sting Chameleon sailed over the group and landed on his feet behind them. "Well, fine, pal!" he laughed. "Guess I'll just have to tell the boss I had to execute another traitor! HAAAA!!!"

Chameleon swung his spikey tail, and a hail of thorns embedded themselves in Armadillo's chest. He thrust out his arms and sprayed the warrior with green energy blasts to bring him to his knees. FInally, with total precision, he sent his tongue straight through Armadillo's head.

"Oh, no!!!" Iris cried as Armadillo fell to the ground with a dull THUD.

"Armadillo!" Smith cried as he ran to the downed Reploid and helped him sit up.

Armadillo grunted in pain. "I'm... fading fast..." he whispered.

"Armadillo, tell me!" Smith said. "Why? Why did you do that?!"

Armadillo gave Smith a warm smile. "You told me that I should do what I want to do..." he said.

"...Armadillo..." Smith whispered.

With the smile still on his face, Armadillo's eyes closed and he slumped backwards. Smith lowered his body back to the ground and got up, his eyes starting to water.

"You... You rotten bastard!!!" Smith yelled at Chameleon. "You're not gonna get away with that!!!"

"Hee hee hee," Chameleon chuckled. "And what're YOU gonna do about it, fleshy?!"

Sting Chameleon took a step forward, but he leaped back from a barrage of plasma blasts. He looked up to see Iris, Snake Man and Sharon glaring at him, their guns trained on his feet. "He's not going to do anything," Sharon growled. "It's US you should be worried about!"

Sting Chameleon blinked in surprise, then laughed crazily again. "You think you can take me?! Fine! Bring it on, chumps!!! But I'm not gonna go down easy!"

A cold wind blew over the rooftop. Iris glanced over at Armored Armadillo's lifeless form and frowned. If a powerful Reploid like him didn't last against Sting Chameleon, what chance did her friends and she have?


	8. Reptilian Rumble

**CHAPTER 8**

**REPTILIAN RUMBLE**

The sun was setting and the cloudy sky grew darker each moment. The city's bright lights fell upon the museum rooftop, eerily illuminating everyone on it.

"Didn't think Armadillo would have the guts to bring you in," Sting Chameleon cackled darkly.

"At least he was man enough to come out and challenge us, instead of skukling in the shadows," Darren growled. "You're nothing but a scumbag!"

"And proud of it!" Chameleon snapped. "I can't wait to get back to the boss with this sweet little prize!" He laughed creepily and flicked his tongue at Iris.

"Ugh!" Iris fumed. "There's no way I'll be going with you now!"

"Fine, then," Chameleon said as he thrust out his arm cannons. "Looks like I'll do this the FUN way!"

Sting Chameleon leaped at Iris with a barrage of laser blasts. Iris managed to avoid the artillery and countered with a saber blow to the shoulder. "Oooh, feisty!" Chameleon cackled as he rubbed the damaged spot. "You're gonna have to do more than tickle me, though!" Without warning, he opened his mouth and launched his lightning-fast tongue straight at Iris.

"She's no ice cream cone, buddy!" Sharon snapped as she fired her Sonic Tentacle weapon, lassoed Chameleon's wayward tongue and brought it to the ground. Chameleon snapped his neck back, and his tongue- and Sharon- went flying backwards. He then leaped up into the air and lashed Sharon with his tail, sending her crashing back to the rooftop.

"Sharon!" Darren cried as he helped his friend up. "Are you OK?!"

"I'll live," Sharon grunted.

"M'heee!!!" Sting Chameleon chortled. "This is what I was warned against?! Please! I'd like to stay and slaughter, but I've got something else to grab, too!" With that, he shimmered and vanished.

"What the?! Where'd he go?!" Iris asked as she looked around frantically.

"I bet he just ran off," Sharon growled. "Jerks like that always hit and run..."

Snake Man stood absolutely still and stuck his tongue out. Suddenly his eyes widened in alarm. "He's going into the museum!" he exclaimed as he ran to the side of the roof and leaped over.

"What? Into the museum?" Smith asked. "What could he possibly..."

Everyone looked at each other nervously. "The syrum!!!" they all exclaimed.

Suddenly, the sound of shattering glass pierced the night. Instantly Iris and Sharon were vaulting off the roof towards the museum entrance, while Darren and Professor Smith headed for the service elevator.

When Iris and Sharon reached the main entrance, they found Snake Man looking at several smashed windows. "No! Why'd you have to break the windows?!" he yelled angrily.

"What's wrong, Snake Man?" Iris asked. "They're just windows!"

"The museum board was tough enough on Professor Smith when he relocated his Reploid lab here," Snake Man sighed. "If Sting Chameleon wrecks the museum, they'll throw him out and fire all of us for sure!"

"So, it's not just the syrum at stake here!" Sharon gulped. "Come on, let's go after him!!!"

Iris, Sharon and Snake Man charged into the museum and looked around. Things were deathly silent; only the night winds blew.

"So quiet..." Iris said. "Do you think..."

"Hey!!!" Sharon yelled. "Lizard-breath! I know you're in here! Why don't you come out and fight like a man?!"

Snake Man closed his eyes and stuck his tongue out again. After a few moments, he motioned towards the stairs that led to Smith's lab. "Someone's over that way," he said.

"How do you know, Snake Man?" Iris asked.

"Like real snakes, I can use my tongue to detect vibrations," Snake Man explained. "So, I can literally feel people's footsteps... Come on!"

The three Reploids ran over to the stairwell and looked around. "I dunno, Snake," Sharon said as she looked around. "Nobody's here..."

"I was sure I heard something over..." Snake Man started to say. Just then, he gave a startled yelp and shoved Iris to the ground just as Sting Chameleon's iron tongue lashed out from out of nowhere and knocked a crater in the ground.

"Whaaagh!" Iris cried. "Where'd THAT come from?!"

The air around the stairwell shimmered and Sting Chameleon appeared clinging to the wall, clutching Professor Olson and the syrum chips. "Lookie what I got!" he cackled in a singsong fashion. "Now, give up, or this dude's toast!"

"Guys, stop him!!!" Olson yelled. "I just figured out how to assemble that thing!"

"Let Professor Olson go!" Sharon yelled angrily. "What'd he do to you?!"

"Wrong place, wrong time!" Chameleon replied. "Now give up, or I do to him what I did to 'Dillo!"

Suddenly, Sting Chameleon felt a sharp pain in his arm and glanced down; A long, mechanical cobra had launched from Snake Man's arm cannon and snagged him like a grappling hook. "Kyeeee!!!" Chameleon shrieked as he furiously struggled to free himself. "Let me go, fiend!!!"

"Release your hostage," Snake Man growled angrily.

"G'rrrr! Fine!" Chameleon said as he dropped Olson and snagged the chips. "I've got what I need, anyway! G'yee hee hee hee heeee!!!" Quick as a flash, he leaped from the wall and vanished again.

"Hey, get back here!!!" Sharon yelled.

"Just make me!!!" Chameleon's voice echoed. Just then, the dinosaur skeleton in the center of the main hallway teetered, then crumbled into a mess of bones, sending dust flying everywhere.

"Agh!!!" Snake Man cried. "No! I slaved for MONTHS to assemble that brontosaur!!!"

"We have to get Chameleon out of the museum, so nothing else gets smashed," Iris said.

"But he can turn invisible!" Sharon exclaimed. "How are we gonna fight him like that?!"

"Don't worry, Sharon; I have a plan," Iris said as Professor Smith and Darren appeared behind her. "Ah! Darren! Just who I wanted to see!"

"Huh?" Darren asked.

"Snake Man, Sharon and you go and get Sting Chameleon to follow you out the main entrance," Iris said. "We'll take care of the rest!"

"Me?..." Snake Man asked.

"You know this museum really well," Iris said. "AND you can actually hear Sting Chameleon! You're the optimal choice!"

"But..." Snake Man said. "I've never fought before..."

"Don't worry about it!" Iris said. "I believe in you, Snake Man! Now, go get 'im!"

"...OK, Iris," Snake Man said as he gave her a determined look. "You can count on me!"

"Nice sentiment," Sharon said with a grin. "C'mon, Snake! Let's teach that overgrown lizard a lesson!!!"

"Nobody's going to wreck this museum while I'M here!" Snake Man growled as he balled his fists and followed Sharon down the hallway.

* * *

Sharon and Snake Man ran through the dinosaur and sound wave exhibits, with Snake Man listening hard all the way. When they reached the space exhibit, though, they both looked around, frustrated.

"Man!" Sharon huffed. "Where IS he?!"

Snake Man glanced back and forth, his tongue outstretched and tingling with tiredness. Suddenly, he looked straight up and fired his arm cannon. A loud yelp came from the impact zone, and Sting Chameleon materialized.

"Ow!!!" Chameleon snarled. "You're sure a pain, snakey!"

"Get out of the museum!!!" Snake Man yelled angrily. "There's nothing in here for you!!!"

"Bein' able to find me, even with my camouflaging powers..." Chameleon sneered. "You sure know how to push my buttons, snakey... But I know just how to push YOURS, too!" He fired his tongue and lashed the wire holding up a model of Saturn. Snake Man watched in sheer horror as the model plummeted to the ground and shattered like glass.

"Why you little!..." Snake Man fumed as his eyes grew furious and a vein pulsed on his forehead. "I'm warning you!!!"

Chameleon's mouth curled into a poisonous smile. With another flick of his tail, three more models smashed to the floor. "Warning, shmarning!" he chortled as he leaped onto the ceiling and fired more green blasts, which blew several more divots in the floor.

Snake Man's eye twitched, and his teeth ground together. "OK, that's it! Now it's personal!!!" he snarled. He aimed at an outcropping, fired the cobra grapple and hauled himself up so that he was face-to-face with Sting Chameleon. "You're going down!!!" he declared.

"Snake Man!" Sharon called.

"Go out and help Iris!" Snake Man shouted. "I'll deal with this jerk!"

"I'd like to see you try!" Chameleon laughed as he disappeared again.

Snake Man stuck out his tongue, waited for a moment and fired off to the right. Sparks flew, and Chameleon reappeared. "OW!!!" he snarled.

"Don't you get it?!" Snake Man asked. "I know where you're going to be! That camouflage stuff won't help you!"

"Fine, then," Chameleon said as he flicked his tail and sent a barrage of spines into the wall above Snake Man. "We'll just fight my favorite way... Dirty!"

Snake Man sent his grappler plunging into a light fixture and swung to it. Sting Chameleon fired more green volleys, but Snake Man held firm.

"Fine!" Chameleon snorted. "So you can hear me. Big deal! Look at yourself! You're hanging by a thread with no place to go!"

"Oh, yeah?" Snake man said as his other arm shifted into another cannon. Chameleon didn't have time to react as Snake Man fired another grapple and caught him around the middle, then flung him to the floor.

"Agh!" Chameleon snarled as he smashed to the linoleum. "You sneaky!..."

"High praise from you," Snake Man said. "Come on, let's go!"

Sting Chameleon charged across the floor at Snake Man, swinging his tail and firing bullets every which way. Snake Man took several hits, but kept leaping away. He led Chameleon back through the rooms to the main entrance.

"You're at the end of your rope, snakey!" Chameleon laughed. "Your museum's a mess, and I'm about to get off scott free with yer precious chips! HA!!!" Chameleon leaped into the air and aimed his arm cannons straight down at Snake Man.

"Oh, yeah?!" Snake Man shouted as he aimed upwards. "I've still got the Search Snakes that Dr. Wily gave me!"

Snake Man fired two mechanical, green snakes, and Sting Chameleon screeched in pain as they plunged their fangs into his cannons and tore them off. The four chips sparkled in midair as Snake Man reached out to grab them...

"NOT!!!" Sting Chameleon yelled. His tongue flew out, snapped up all the chips and retreated back into his mouth.

"Hey!!!" Snake Man yelled.

"You may have got my arms, but I've still got plenty of tricks!!!" Chameleon laughed as he leaped backwards. Snake Man quickly fired his grappler and snagged Chameleon again just as he landed a foot outside of the museum.

"You're history," Snake Man growled. "Just give up!"

"No way, you idiot!" Sting Chameleon chortled as he looked around. "Can't you see that I'm outside?! There's too much noise for you to hear me out here!!! So long, fool!" With that, he promptly vanished and shook off the grapple.

"Iris, now!!!" Snake Man shouted.

"Meh?!" Chameleon's voice asked. Suddenly, an avalanche of snow came pouring down from the outcropping above the museum entrance. Snake Man looked up and grinned; Iris, Sharon and Darren were standing on the outcropping, each clutching a shovel. The fallen snow had covered everything on the sidewalk, including Sting Chameleon's surprised form.

"Ha! Can't disappear now, eh?!" Sharon laughed. "OK, Iris!"

Iris and Sharon pummeled Sting Chameleon with plasma blasts until smoke poured out of his body. "Eeeeyyyaggghhhh..." Chameleon reeled as he staggered around outside. "I'm so gone!"

"Snake Man, go for it!!!" Iris called.

"Got it!" Snake Man shouted as he aimed at Sting Chameleon and fired. A single Search Snake flew out and blew a hole in Chameleon's stomach. The crooked beast blew to smithereens, sending shrapnel across the pavillion.

"YEAH!!!" Darren cheered. "Go, Snake Man!!! You rock!!!"

"Heh!" Snake Man chuckled. "I guess I did do pretty well, huh?..."

Sting Chameleon's surprised-looking head rolled to a stop right in front of Snake Man. Snake Man picked it up, opened its mouth and removed the stolen syrum chips. "Case closed," he said as he tossed the head away.

"Not quite," Iris said. "Get Chameleon's weapon drive! You can adapt a skill of his into your own systems!"

"Oh?" Snake Man asked as he picked up one of Chameleon's arms and studied it. "Really? Cool!"

"Iris! Snake Man!" Professor Smith exclaimed as he ran outside and looked around. "Oh, thank God you're safe... Geez, what a mess."

"I know..." Snake Man said as he shook his head. "I couldn't protect the museum... I'm sorry, professor."

"It's all right, Snake Man," Smith said with a smile. "Thanks to you, nobody was hurt, and the actual damage wasn't anything a late-night cleanup won't fix. Did you get the chips back?"

"Yeah," Snake Man said as he handed the four parts to Smith. "Plus I found Chameleon's weapon drive."

"Wonderful!" Smith said happily. "Come on back in! Professor Olson's figure out how to assemble the syrum! And while he's doing that, I'll install your new weapon."

"Cool!" Sharon said as she helped Darren down to the ground. "Lead the way, professor!"

Everyone headed back into the museum, but Iris and Snake Man trailed behind. "You did a good job today, Snake Man," Iris said. "Thanks."

"I should thank you, really," Snake Man replied. "You gave me a chance, and I'm really grateful for it."

Iris smiled warmly. "Any time," she said. "And I hope you'll come with us to find Zero now..."

"Well," Snake Man said as he looked around. "The museum's pretty smashed up now... Someone's gotta stick around and fix it..."

"I bet you can clean it up without any trouble!" Iris said. "And I'll help you!"

"Thanks, Iris," Snake Man replied. The two friends headed down the stairs towards Smith's lab.

* * *

"There we go!" Olson said as he attached the last two computer chips. "It turns out that these chips form a cube! How about that?"

"Wow," Darren said. "Nice work, professor."

"Now we just have to figure out where Zero's buried..." Sharon said as she scratched her chin.

"And when we find that place, we'll find X, too," Iris added. "He'll be a big help in the search!"

"There we go," Professor Smith said as he backed away from his work table. "Sting Chameleon's weapon drive is installed."

"Thanks, professor," Snake man said as he got off the bench. "So, uh, what can I do?"

"Actually, I'm not really sure..." Smith said. "I mean, you could have the green lazers, or the spikes..."

"Ross!" Professor Krein cried as he ran into the lab. "The museum board wants a word with Snake Man and you about what just happened! Man, do they sound mad!!!"

"Ulp!" Snake Man gulped, and promptly disappeared.

"...Woah..." Darren exclaimed.

"...What?" Snake Man's voice asked. "...Wait... WOAH!!!"

"...I guess that answers your question," Smith chuckled.

Everyone had a nice, long laugh.

"Seriously, though, they sound really pissed," Krein repeated.


	9. Awakening

**CHAPTER 9**

**AWAKENING**

Science Museum curator Frances G. Peabody sat at his desk with an angry, irritated look plastered across his middle-aged face. He was angry for a pretty good reason: Professor Smith's experiments had brought on two Maverick attacks that had decimated his museum. In addition to that, Smith hadn't even had the gall to answer his angry summons in person; he had sent his lousy janitor robot.

"What has happened since Smith came has been nothing short of a disaster," Peabody growled as he jammed his cigar into an ashtray and glared at Snake Man. "The foundation has been smashed, exhibits have been shattered and things are in disarray everywhere! What have you to say for yourselves?!"

"I take full responsibility for the most recent attack, sir," Snake Man said with a polite bow. "I wasn't able to get Sting Chameleon out of the building fast enough... I'll personally clean and rebuild everything that was destroyed."

"You bet you will!" Peabody snarled as he banged on his desk. "Every one of you Reploids will be repairing this entire museum, without any extra pay!!!"

"I understand, sir," Snake Man replied. "If that is all..."

"I'm not finished!" Peabody snapped. "I refuse to have Smith make a mockery of me by turning this establishment into a haven for his hooligan friends. As soon as the repairs are done, you're all fired! You'll never work in this town again!"

"W-what?!" Snake Man gasped. "No, please, sir, you can't do that! We never intended for these attacks to happen!"

"What's done is done!" Peabody replied. "And you've been terrible for this museum, anyway!"

"Come on," Snake Man argued. "Because Smith has 'ancient robots' working here in the museum, visitor turnout is at a record high. Plus, since the museum's non-profit, lots of those visitors donate money. Smith's 'experiments' are giving this museum a boost, both financially and popularly!"

Peabody bit his lip and growled. He hated it when someone had a good argument against him; having such ancient robots as Iris and Snake Man around was a profit-booster.

"Sir, just give us one more chance," Snake Man said. "We'll make sure this never happens again."

Peabody frowned and sighed. "Oh, all right," he growled. "One more chance, and only one more. Got it?"

"Thank you, sir," Snake Man said with another bow. "I'll tell the others."

"Good," Peabody replied. "...Where are they, anyway?"

"They, um, had some business at the cemetery," Snake Man replied as he scratched his head awkwardly.

* * *

Gray clouds swept through the sky on chilly winds as Sharon and Darren finished filling a hole in the St. Paul graveyard. "Well, that's that..." Darren said. "Sorry we couldn't do anything, Professor."

"It couldn't be helped," Smith said with a shake of his head. "Chameleon's tongue punctured his main control chip, so he was pretty much doomed anyway..."

"It's a real shame, though," Sharon muttered. "He coulda been a big help if that damn lizard hadn't gutted 'im. We're lucky the groundskeeper let us bury him on such short notice, though."

There was a long pause as everyone stared at the fresh grave. Another chilly gust blew, and Iris shivered and hiked up her jacket.

"Maybe we should be getting back," Darren said. "I'm sure Snake Man's meeting with the curator is over now..."

"I suppose so..." Smith said.

As everyone started out of the cemetery, Smith and Iris lingered behind. Smith took one last look at the gravesite. "Until we meet again, Armored Armadillo..." he said quietly.

"Armadillo died trying to protect us," Iris said as she looked up at Smith. "He tried to stop Sting Chameleon, who was after me... So..."

"Don't blame yourself for this, Iris," Smith said. "He knew the risks. He'd always tell me that he was prepared..."

"I can't help but feel like I contributed..." Iris said. "I'd already weakened him during our own fight... Maybe if I had backed him up, he would've..."

"Stay cool, Iris," Smith said. "You're just going through the grieving process. It'll pass in time..."

"I know..." Iris sighed sadly. "What's bothering me... is that I've been involved in this before..."

"Pardon?" Smith asked.

"I forced Zero to kill me..." Iris said. "After I was... gone, I can't help but wonder if he said the very same things I'm saying now... 'If only I had tried to reason with Colonel instead of fighting... Why couldn't I see things Iris's way?...'"

"Perhaps he did," Smith replied. "You can ask him when we find him."

"Yes, I suppose..." Iris said quietly.

Smith ran ahead to catch up with Sharon and Darren. Iris looked back at the grave and sadly shook her head. "What a waste..." she sighed. "I'm sorry..."

* * *

The rest of the day passed slowly as everyone cleaned up and rebuilt all the ruined parts of the science museum. When it was done, everyone collapsed in Smith's lab. "Oh... I've wiped so many windows, I think my fingerprints came off..." Darren groaned.

"At least it's all fixed now..." Snake Man said. "Now we can focus on finding the cave where X and Zero are sealed..."

"That'll be easy!" Professor Krein said as he turned to the computer. "I'll just run a search for any and all ruins with volcanic activity inside of them. That should narrow us down a bit..."

"Yes, good thinking," Smith said. "Once we do that, we can go and search each of them until we find something!"

"All of them? Now?..." Sharon groaned. "Urghh... No offense, prof, but I don't think I'm up to it right now... I'm worn out from all the cleaning, and I smell like chlorine, too..."

"So THAT's what it was!" Snake Man exclaimed. "I could've sworn we had a swimming pool around here and no one had told me!"

"Uh, Wallace, I think you should know something..." Olson started as Krein typed at the computer.

"What is it, Olson?" Krein asked. "I'm trying to set up a search of... WHAAAAAT?!"

"What?! What is it?!" Smith asked as everyone gathered around Krein.

Krein's hands shook, sweat poured down his face and his fog coated his glasses. "The... the entire archaeology database..." he stammered. "It's... It's gone!..."

"GONE?!" Sharon asked. "Whaddya mean, GONE?!"

"Gone! Eliminated! Deleted!" Krein wailed. "It's all gone! All the research, all the maps, all the data... It's totally empty! Why?!"

"Ermm, I think I can explain that..." Olson said nervously.

"What's wrong, professor?" Iris asked.

"Remember when Sting Chameleon took me hostage?" Olson asked. "Well, he crawled all the way down here to get me, since I was working on assembling the syrum... After he grabbed me and took the chips, I saw him jam his tail into the computer. I thought it was just an accident, but..."

"That slimy little!..." Sharon snarled. "If Snake Man hadn't totaled Chameleon, I'd wring his neck!!!"

"The good news is that I can salvage most of the data from the rest of the museum computers," Krein said as he typed. "The bad news is that it'll take about a day to do so..."

"Just a day?" Iris asked. "That doesn't seem so bad..."

"Iris, think," Smith said. "I bet Chameleon didn't just delete our database; he probably uploaded its data and transmitted it to his boss! That means that we're racing against time to find X and Zero now!"

"Oh, no!!!" Iris cried. "This is awful! What's going to happen to them?!"

"Professor, quit upsetting Iris!" Darren snapped. "She's having a rough enough time as it is."

"Sorry..." Professor Smith apologized.

"Say..." Sharon said as she scratched her chin and eyed Smith suspiciously. "How come you think that?... You mentioned that someone you knew was behind this earlier..."

"Yes, that's true..." Smith answered. "This whole scheme was certainly the work of Ivan Ribosome."

"Ribosome?" Darren asked. "The president of CONSTRICT Incorporated?"

"Yeah! You told me about him on the way to Detroit," Iris remembered. "Why do you think it's him?"

"Ribosome developed an almost sickening fascination with ancient robots a while ago..." Smith recalled. "He thought that by resurrecting them and harvesting their powers, he could make new products for his company. More products mean more buyers, and more buyers mean more profit... No doubt, all the Mavericks we've run into were working for him..."

"But why is he after Iris specifically?" Sharon asked as she glanced over at her friend. "I mean, she is pretty good-looking, and she cooks well, but she's not a super-extraordinary Reploid, is she?..."

"Who knows?" Smith asked with a shrug. "Whatever the case, Ribosome thinks that acquiring Iris will make him a lot of money... So much money, that he's willing to invest in all those Mavericks."

"Ugh," Darren grunted. "The love of money is the root of all evil..."

"And if Ribosome finds the legendary Mega Man X and Zero, who knows what he'll cook up for them!..." Smith sighed crossly. "We have to find them before he does!"

"But our database has been wiped clean..." Krein growled. "That Ribosome's a slippery one..."

"Regrettably, we don't have many choices right now..." Snake Man sighed. "I know this sounds cold compared to what Professor Smith just said, but why don't we get some rest?"

"Snake Man?..." Iris asked.

"The database won't be restored for a whole day," Snake Man elaborated. "We can use this time to rest up for the search. I mean, you can't expect to go up against Ribosome or his goons when you've just been repairing walls for six hours?..."

"Hmm..." Darren said. "You have a point... Until Professor Krein gets the database going, all we can really do is wait."

Iris looked at Darren and Snake Man and thought for a moment. "...I guess you guys are right..." she said. "We can't just go charging off somewhere; there's no way we'd get anything done..."

"All right, then," Smith said. "The museum has a resting area for scientists who need to stay overnight. Why don't we camp out there?"

"Sounds good to me," Sharon said. "It'll be fun, like a sleep-over! We can order a pizza and watch some movies or something!"

"Yeah, we could use a break," Iris agreed. "All right; let's spend the night here while we wait."

"Cool!" Darren laughed as he left the room. "I'll go get the beds ready."

"I'll find some good films," Snake Man added. "I bet the Omnitheater has plenty of them."

"And I'll do THESE honors," Sharon chuckled as she grabbed the phone. "I'm callin' Carbones! Who wants Canadian Bacon?!"

* * *

Later that night, Iris, Snake Man, Darren, Sharon and Professor Smith sat around the flat-screen plasma TV in the resting area, clad only in pajamas and cheerfully munching pizza.

"So, what kind of movies have we?" Darren asked.

"Well, these are what I found in the Omnitheater," Snake Man said as he pulled out a few dusty-looking DVD cases. "We've got 'The Heart Of Africa,' 'Forever Everest' and 'Secrets Of Egypt.'"

"Is that the one about that kid who finds the cursed thing and gets possessed by some Pharaoh and has to save the world by playing with jacks?" Iris asked.

"I'm afraid not," Snake Man said.

"Pass," Iris replied.

"Aww, geez, Snake Man, these are all documentaries," Professor Smith grumbled. "Haven't we got anything else?"

"Well..." Snake Man said as his eyes wandered. "I suppose we could watch my bootleg version of 'Vampire Stalker C; Spudlust...'"

"Hey, I'm all for that!" Sharon voted.

"Sharon, come on, this is a sleep-over," Darren said. "Don't you feel like changing?"

Unlike the rest of the group, Sharon was still in her body armor. "Nope, not at all," Sharon said. "C'mon, let's watch the movie!"

"Sharon, I know disrobing makes you uncomfortable..." Iris said. "...But it might help you relax right now."

"Is that so?" Sharon asked. "Well... I guess I feel a little antsy..."

"It's just fine, Sharon," Smith said. "Go at your own pace."

"All right..." Sharon said. She clutched at her helmet and slowly pulled it off.

"Huh?" Darren asked.

"Wow," Smith exclaimed.

"What?" Sharon asked. "What is it?"

"Your hair..." Snake Man said. "You never told us that you had blue hair, Sharon."

Sharon had fairly long, luscious, sapphire-colored hair, most of which was tied into a short ponytail. "Well, it never came up," she replied curtly. "What, are you gonna laugh now?"

"Of course not," Smith said. "It's very nice."

"Come on, Sharon, do you really think we're like that?" Darren asked. "I think you have great hair!"

"It's so shiny and radiant..." Iris said. "I wish I could get my hair to sparkle like yours."

"Oh, get out!" Sharon snorted with a cross wave. "...You really think so?"

"Sure," Snake Man replied. "I don't quite understand how you keep it like that and not get helmet-head, but I like it."

Sharon thought for a moment, then smiled quietly and set her helmet behind her. "Let's watch that movie now, OK?" she asked.

"OK," Snake Man said as he produced another DVD.

"Oh, wait a minute!" Darren said suddenly. "We need some popcorn! I saw some down in the kitchen; I'll go get it!" He dashed out of the room.

"Uh, Darren, be careful around the-" Smith started.

The air was split by the sound of Darren tumbling down three flights of stairs.

"...I'm okay!" Darren's voice wafted up from below.

"Why couldn't he just take the elevator?" Sharon asked.

Iris couldn't help but giggle.

* * *

After the movie was over, Smith sat back and stretched. "(YAWN) Oh, I'm beat," he said. "I think I'm gonna call it a night."

"Sounds like a plan," Snake Man answered. "It's been a busy day..."

"I guess 40 winks wouldn't be bad about now..." Sharon added. "G'night, guys."

"Are you coming too, Iris?" Darren asked.

"No..." Iris said as she glanced at a computer terminal in the corner. "I think I'm going to do a little searching of my own while the main computer gets fixed."

"Well, OK..." Darren said with a yawn. "But make sure you get some rest, or you'll be really cranky..."

"Of course," Iris said. "Good night, Darren."

Darren hopped onto one of the beds and pulled up the covers, and Iris sat down at the computer terminal to work.

* * *

The midnight hours passed slowly as Iris scanned the internet, searching for possible locations of volcanic ruins. However, every time she found what could have been a lead, her hopes were dashed by a bad server or advertisements. "Nothing anywhere?..." she sighed crossly. "What kind of internet is this?"

As Iris typed, she found her eyelids growing heavier and heavier. "I've gotta... find something... anything... Zero..." she murmured as she slowly tilted forward. Finally, though, her fatigue won and left her snoring in the chair, her face resting on the keyboard.

* * *

The inky darkness melted into a fiery, red light. Iris opened her eyes and saw that she was in the same earthen tunnel as she had been before. Once again, she stood at the start of a long bridge over a lava pool. "Here again?..." she asked as she glanced around. "What could this mean?..."

Suddenly, the atmosphere started shimmering on the far side of the pool. A white, glowing rift opened in the air and Mega Man X emerged. He looked around, then noticed Iris and smiled. "Hello, Iris," he said.

"X!" Iris exclaimed.

X started across the rope bridge towards Iris again. "You've assembled the syrum," he said. "Well done! I knew you could do it. Now, I'll tell you where to find Zero and my capsules..."

Iris was overjoyed for a moment, but then frowned angrily. "You mean you knew where you were this entire time I've been out assembling the syrum?" she huffed.

"Yes," X replied.

"You... You stupid jerk!!!" Iris snarled.

Now it was X's turn to be surprised. "Huh?" he asked, recoiling a bit.

"Why didn't you tell me sooner?!" Iris yelled. "We could've revived you, and you could have helped us! Plus, we could have secured Zero's body instead of looking all over the world for it! Do you have any idea how much grief you caused me?!"

"But, Iris-" X started.

"Don't you 'but Iris' me!!!" Iris huffed. "You were just snoozing away in your capsule while we were globetrotting and risking our lives, not even considering getting out and helping us! You're way stronger than me!!! If you had come, we could've found those syrum chips way faster! We could've gotten Zero revived sooner!... We could've... we could've..."

"...Iris..." X said.

Tears were freely running down Iris's cheeks now. "We could've saved lives..." she said. "I had to kill so many Mavericks... Armored Armadillo was murdered, and Darren almost died fighting Fefnir... If you and Zero had been there, we could have stopped the killing..."

"Oh, Iris..." X sighed. "I'm sorry. This has really been hard for you, hasn't it..."

"I hate fighting and killing..." Iris cried. "I've never liked them... This has been almost too much..."

"Iris, whoever's after you will stop at nothing to capture you," X said. "You have to be strong. Times of war call for extreme measures; even if you hate violence above all else, you're left with little choice... Believe me... I know how you feel."

"You... You do?..." Iris asked.

"Not once in the war against Sigma did I enjoy what I was doing," X said. "Sure, it seemed fun to go off and fight Mavericks at first... But the first time I had to kill... I'll never forget how awful it felt..." He paused and looked away. There was an awkward silence.

"X..." Iris said.

"Iris, be strong," X said as he turned back to her. "You're almost there. Zero's waiting for you. So... Be brave, and never give up."

Iris looked at X quietly, then nodded with a determined look. "All right," she said. "I'll do it. I'll be there soon, X."

"I know you will," X said with a smile. "Now, go, Iris... Iris..."

"Iris... Iris!..." a familiar voice echoed from elsewhere. "...Wake up, Iris!..."

"Huh-huhhhh?..." Iris groaned as her eyelids fluttered open and she sat up. She was still at the chair in front of the computer, and the rest of the room was still coated in darkness. Darren stood worriedly by her side. "...Darren?..." she muttered as she rubbed her eyes. "What... what time is it?..."

"Almost 2 AM," Darren said. "I'm sorry, Iris, but, ermm, I was kinda bein' kept awake by your, umm, snoring."

"Snoring?..." Iris asked as she blushed deeply. "Oh... Sorry, Darren. I just fell asleep, just like that. Can you believe it?"

Darren smiled and pointed. "Yeah, I can."

Iris glanced down and was embarrassed to see a thin string of drool connecting her lower lip to the keyboard. "Oooh..." she mumbled. "I must've been really tired..."

"Maybe you should go to bed," Darren said. "Sleeping like that can't be good for your back."

"Yes, you're right..." Iris said. "I just had the weirdest dream... I dreamt that X came to me and told me where Zero was..." She paused and shook her head. "But there's no way it could be that easy. It was just a dream, right?"

Darren opened his mouth to say something, but then glanced at the computer screen. "...Maybe not..." he whispered.

Iris turned and looked at the screen. The monitor showed a detailed map of Japan, wiith a red dot flashing at a point on the western coast and a set of coordinates blinking beneath it. She gasped and put her hands to her mouth.

Darren smiled again. "I guess dreams really can come true, huh?" he mused.

"X..." Iris said. "...Thank you..."

* * *

In the morning, everyone awoke to Iris's great news. "So, X sent you his coordinates..." Smith said as everyone gathered around the teleporter. "Now getting to him will be a piece of cake!"

"The coordinates point to a small cave beneath the ruins of Inami Temple," Olson said as he entered the coordinates into the machine. "Volcanic activity is mildly strong there, so be careful."

"I'm glad your friend contacted you, Iris," Krein said. "I wasn't looking forward to searching through what's left of the database."

"Just keep Peabody off our backs," Smith said. "We'll be back soon, with a few new friends."

Snake Man, then Sharon, then Professor Smith, then Darren stepped into the teleporter and vanished. "Your turn, Iris," Olson said as he motioned to the machine.

Iris swallowed hard. "Zero... I'm coming..." she whispered as she stepped onto the machine's podium.

Once again Iris felt as light as a feather, and then she was standing amongst her friends at the mouth of a cave. Its pitch-black mouth radiated a strange aura, almost beckoning for her to enter.

"...Is... Is this it?..." Snake Man asked.

"This is it," Smith answered. "Ready to go in?"

"There're bound to be plenty of dangers," Darren warned. "We'd better stay on our toes..."

"Bring it on," Sharon said as she cracked her knuckles.

The party looked at Iris, who was looking into the cave with an expression of fear and grim determination. After a pause, she swallowed. "...Let's go," she said quietly.

Everyone nodded solemnly, then slowly set foot into the cavern's gaping maw.

* * *

The party walked a few yards into the cave. The morning light from the outside slowly faded away to complete darkness.

"Whew... Sure is dark..." Iris said.

"Heh. Hard to believe that the end of our adventure's deep inside the earth," Darren chuckled.

"To reach Heaven, one must sometimes travel through Hell," Snake Man replied mysteriously.

"Knock it off," Sharon grumbled. "You're creepin' me out."

The group walked on for another ten minutes. "Does anyone else realize that Zero and X are in a volcanic cave..." Darren spoke up. "...And this really doesn't look like one?"

"Yeah, I was about to say something..." Sharon said.

"Hmmm..." Professor Smith said as he suddenly leaned over and put his hand on the wall.

"What're you doing, Professor?" Iris asked.

"I'm feeling the wall's temperature," Smith said as he moved along the wall. "If it gets hotter, we're sure to be going the right-WAAAAAAHHHH!!!"

"Professor?!" Snake Man exclaimed.

The next few moments were filled with the sound of a rolling body, with a lot of bumps and thuds mixed in. After a good ten seconds, it stopped. Professor Smith's faraway voice gave a low groan.

"Prof!!!" Sharon called. "Are you OK?!"

"Urrrgghh..." Smith groaned. "There's a really steep incline right in front of you... Ow..."

"Steep..." Iris said. Suddenly, her eyes widened. "Of course! Why didn't I think of this sooner?!" She pulled out her Z-Saber and a bright, green glow lit the cave up. A long, steep hill wound down into the darkness before them.

"Woah," Darren gulped. "Good thing the professor was watching out for us..."

"Yeah," Snake Man said halfheartedly. "But who's watching out for him?..."

"Let's go down it really slowly," Sharon said. "Don't wanna risk taking a tumble..."

The group began picking their way down the rigid slope, grabbing onto whatever holds they could find. Sharon was the fastest, so she reached the bottom first. "Whew..." she panted. "It's OK once you get down here! But man, it's really warm now..."

"You're telling me," Professor Smith grunted as he stood up and rubbed at his arm. "It's starting to feel volcanic now..."

Iris and Darren brought up the rear of the descenders. "Darren, how are you back there?" Iris asked as she grabbed another stalagmite.

"Yeah! I'm fine," Darren said as he reached out to grab another hold. Suddenly, his feet caught each other and he lost his balance. He crashed into Iris and they hit the ground and barrelled downhill.

"What the-" Snake Man asked as he turned around to look and got dragged into the rolling body mass.

"I'm sure there's molten rock somewhere near," Smith said as he looked around. "I can feel the heat... I can even smell sulfur."

"Hey, guys!" Sharon yelled up the hill. "What's taking you so long?! Hurry-"

The barrelling ball of friends caught Sharon and Professor Smith and raced down the tunnel at murderous speed.

"AAAAAHHH!!!" Iris cried as she held onto anything she could grab at.

"Dammit, Darren!!!" Sharon yelled. "Can't you control your own feet?!"

"If I could, we wouldn't be having this conversation, now, would we?!" Darren retorted.

"Urgh... I think I'm getting ill..." Snake Man groaned.

"Don't worry," Smith said. "We're bound to stop sooner or later!"

The sickening, jolting ride went on as the ball plummeted into a larger room. Suddenly, it hit a divot in the ground, veered off to the right and smacked into the wall, separating its five components.

"Guoooo..." Snake Man groaned as his eyes whirled in his head.

"I kinda woulda preferred 'later...'" Sharon groaned.

Darren slowly got up and dusted himself off. "Where... Where are we?" he asked.

Iris looked around. The party was in a chamber as tall as a basketball court. Below them bubbled a lake of magma, and a rope bridge connected their land mass to a small island in the center, which was connected to the other side of the room by another bridge.

"Amazing..." Iris said as she looked around. "This... This is it..."

"What's it, Iris?" Smith asked.

"Professor!" Iris exclaimed. "This is the place I saw in my dream!"

"The dreams where you talked to X?" Sharon said. "Wow."

"So, logically..." Snake Man said as he looked around. "Maybe this is where X is sealed. But this is just a lava lake... Where could he possibly be?..."

Everyone looked around the room for clues, but no such luck came. Finally, Darren looked up. "Woah!" he exclaimed as he pointed. "Check THAT out!!!"

Attached to the ceiling directly above the island was a large, spider-like machine. It hummed quietly as it its many spindly, pulsing metal veins thrust into the rocks around it. In its center was a large, green capsule, and inside the capsule a familiar figure could be seen.

"My word..." Smith gasped as everyone ran to look up at it.

"Wow..." Sharon said.

"That's him?..." Snake Man asked.

"It's him..." Iris said. "Mega Man X... Zero's best friend, and one of the world's greatest saviours."

"I remember reading about him..." Darren said. "He fought countless battles against the Mavericks until he mysteriously disappeared. Of course, since the Mavericks disappeared at the same time, nobody really complained..." He glanced up at the device again. "Why's that machine rigged up to the rock? It's like it's connecting into the cave somehow..."

"It kind of looks like the machine is directly wired into the earth," Smith remarked. "Maybe it's manipulating the subterranean activity to ensure that the cave stays intact?"

Suddenly, the entire room shook violently. The magma pool below writhed and sloshed. "Aaaagh!" Snake Man cried. "What's going on?!"

"An earthquake?!" Darren guessed. "If that machine controls the cave, it's doing a lousy job!"

"No, wait..." Iris said as she listened hard. "I don't think this is an earthquake... Do you hear that?..."

Everyone strained their ears and listened. A faint whine was coming from a nearby wall. "What d'you suppose that is?" Sharon asked.

"If I didn't know better," Smith said. "I'd say that's the sound of a really big-"

Suddenly, the entire wall crumbled into dust and a stream of bubbling lava oozed out onto the ground. A large rhinoceros Reploid emerged from the hole, brandishing a huge drill arm.

"...I hate it when I'm right," Smith groaned.

"Ha! I found it!" the Reploid laughed as he glanced up at the machine. "Mega Man X is mine!!!"

"Hey!" Iris shouted as she confronted the humongous Maverick and readied her I-Buster. "Who're you?!"

"The name's Tunnel Rhino!" Rhino snarled. "So, you must be the babe the boss is after! Great! I'll nab X AND you!!!"

"I don't think so," Darren growled as everyone surrounded Iris and brandished whatever weapons they had. "If you want Iris, you've gotta go through all of us."

"Hmm..." Rhino smirked as he looked over the menagerie. "Two humans, a scrawny girl and a freak in a snake helmet? This should be easy enough!!! HA!!!"

Rhino stomped his foot, and more lava gushed out of the tunnel. "Agh! Get back!!!" Darren yelled as everyone leaped backwards. "If that stuff touches us, we're goners!"

"No human can withstand that stuff..." Sharon said. "Looks like it's up to me!!!"

"I'll help, Sharon!" Iris said as she leaped beside Sharon. "Let's show 'im!"

"Same here," Snake Man added as he took a place next to Iris.

"No, guys," Sharon said. "Your body armor wasn't built to withstand heat like this."

"But-" Iris objected.

"Hey, you've got a more important job," Sharon said as she nodded towards X's capsule.

Iris's eyes lit up. "Got it!" she said with a nod. "Good luck, Sharon!" Snake Man and she turned and ran across the rope bridge.

"Heh!" Tunnel Rhino laughed. "Telling your friends to beat it?! Not very good strategy!!!"

"I don't need help beating you, buddy," Sharon smirked.

"Ha!" Rhino laughed. "What can you do against the power of fire?! HAAA!!!"

Tunnel Rhino stomped again, and another wave of lava roared out of his tunnel. Sharon stood her ground and the molten rock splattered all over her. Rhino laughed in triumph, but was silenced when Sharon emerged without injury. "Wh-what?!" he gasped.

Sharon smiled sarcastically. "Moron," she said. "I'm a fire-type Reploid! Didn't you notice my armor color?! That's usually a pretty good sign!"

"Oh, balls!" Rhino snarled. "Well, I can still take you down! HAAAAHHH!!!" He charged forward, his giant drill whirring murderously.

Sharon gave Rhino a smarmy look. "Bring it on," she whispered.

* * *

Iris and Snake Man crossed the second rope bridge and came to the room's exit. "Why are we leaving?" Snake Man asked.

"We're not," Iris replied. "We just needed to reach a safe wall."

"Huh?" Snake Man asked, scratching his head.

"We're going to climb up to the capsule and release X," Iris said as she pointed up at the machine on the ceiling. "Come on!"

"Uh..." Snake Man gulped. "Iris, err... I wasn't built with that wall-climbing skill that you Reploids were..."

Iris looked at Snake Man thoughtfully for a moment, then frowned. "Well, crap," she grumbled. "Well, then... I've got another idea."

A moment later, Iris scaled the rock wall. "Hey, watch where you're grabbing!" she panted.

"Sorry," Snake Man apologized as he clung to Iris. "I just can't get a good grip."

"Well, try," Iris replied as she continued to climb. "AGH! Not there!!!"

* * *

"GRAAAHHH!!!" Tunnel Rhino roared as he thrust his giant drill at Sharon. Sharon leaped away and riddled him with bullets, but he wasn't fazed. Neither Reploid had an advantage in the faceoff.

"C'mon, ya big lug!" Sharon sneered as she bounced around. "Or am I too much for ya?!"

Rhino grinned cruelly and pointed his drill arm at Sharon; it fired out and split into three smaller drills.

"...That's new," Sharon gulped. She dodged two of them, but the third one caught her in the knee. "...AGH!" she yelled as she sank to the ground.

"Heh! So much for this duel," Rhino chuckled as he glanced back towards X's capsule and spied Iris and Snake Man slowly climbing towards it. "Time to go to work!" he said as he headed for the bridge.

Suddenly, Rhino's feet stopped moving and he fell flat on his face. He angrily looked around to see Sharon grinning at him, her Sonic Tentacle weapon wrapped around his legs. "Hey, it's rude to just leave in the middle of something!" she scolded.

* * *

"OK! (WHEEZE)" Iris panted as she stopped climbing. "We're at the top of the wall!..."

"Great," Snake Man said as he glanced over at the machine. "But, err, how do we get all the way over there?..."

"Sharon told me about how you can grapple across ceilings," Iris said as she looked back at Snake Man. "Think you can get us over there?"

"Err..." Snake Man gulped. "Well, I'd need some good places to latch onto, but doing from hold to hold with both hands grappling, plus your added weight..."

"Come on, Snake Man!" Iris gasped. "You were complaining about not going on the adventure... Well, you're on it, now! We've gotta work together to finish the job!"

Snake Man looked at Iris for a moment, then set his jaw in determination. "Yeah, you're right," he said. "I'll give it a shot!"

Snake Man looked over at the machine's limbs and spied several bar-like structures jutting out. He fired a grappler and hooked onto one of them. "OK!" he said. "Now, YOU hold onto ME!"

Iris pushed off of the wall and sent Snake Man shimmying across the ceiling. "Keep going, Snake Man! You're doing great!" she encouraged.

"Yeah, just don't look down!" Snake Man replied. "Hang on! We're almost there."

Snake Man came to a halt right in front of X's capsule, where the legendary blue Maverick Hunter stood at attention, his eyes closed and expression relaxed. "OK, so, now what?" he asked as he reeled in his grappler and put both hands on the last bar.

"We need to release it somehow," Iris replied as she climbed up Snake Man and looked over the capsule. "There's gotta be a latch release or something..." She felt around on the machine for a lever or a button, but there were none to be found. "...Drat!"

"I suppose that if we can't find a release switch, we could make our own..." Snake Man suggested. "Urf... And get your thumb out of my eye!!!"

"Make a release switch?... Yeah!" Iris nodded in agreement. She pulled out her Z-Saber and jammed its blade just above the capsule.

"Wait a minute!!" Snake Man started. "If you cut it loose, it could smash to bits on the ground!!!"

"Don't worry!" Iris replied. "We'll hold onto it and go down gently, thanks to your grappler!"

"Oh, boy..." Snake Man panted.

* * *

"You're still here?!" Tunnel Rhino growled as he writhed free of Sharon's rope. "I'll crush you like an ant!!!"

"I don't think so!" Sharon said as she charged up to the Maverick and pummeled him with punches and kicks. "You can absorb plasma bullets pretty well, but let's see how you do in melee!"

"Agh!" Rhino growled as Sharon drove him back. "Stop it, you rotten!..."

"Whoop! Left yourself open!" Sharon laughed as she hammered Rhino in the stomach with rapid punches, and he staggered to the cliff's edge and grabbed his middle in pain. Sharon grinned again. "OK, then, big guy! If that's the way you wanna go..."

"Wha-what?!" Rhino snarled.

"Sayonara, beef butt!!!" Sharon yelled as she flew in and kicked Tunnel Rhino in the jaw. He grunted in pain, then screamed as he fell into the lava lake below. Sharon pumped her fist. "Oh, yeah! Who's the bomb?!" she laughed.

"Well, she's in a good mood today..." Darren gulped.

"She's been practicing her fighting a lot," Smith replied. "I guess her training paid off."

Sharon turned and looked down into the magma. "Well, he's toast," she said. "Let's go help Iris!"

"You really got him?" Darren asked as Smith and he ran over and looked. "...I guess... but..."

Suddenly, the lava began to bubble and stir violently. With a mighty roar, Tunnel Rhino emerged from the magma, looking very angry.

"Oh, boy," Smith gulped. "I shoulda known..."

"HA! You thought this would kill me?!" Rhino laughed as he pointed his drill at Sharon. "I was BUILT for this kind of thing!!! I've wasted enough time with you guys! On to the REAL prize!" He turn and rolled through the magma towards the rock island.

"Oh, crap!!!" Darren said as he looked upwards; Iris and Snake Man were lowering X's capsule down from the ceiling. "They're in trouble!!!"

"Come on!!!" Sharon yelled as she charged towards the rope bridge, Darren and Professor Smith running after her.

* * *

"Just a little more, Snake Man," Iris said as the capsule, Snake Man and she slowly moved towards the ground. "We're almost there!"

"Um, Iris..." Snake man gulped. "Maybe I should tell you now that my grappler only extends 40 meters..."

"What?" Iris asked. "And how high was the machine?"

Snake Man sighed. "I'd say 50 meters," he answered quickly.

"...Oops," Iris replied.

The grapple snapped, and everyone fell the remaining distance onto the ground.

"Owwww..." Iris groaned as she rubbed her sore bottom. "Snake Man, are you OK?..."

"Yeah, I'm fine..." Snake Man grunted as he sat up. "How's the capsule?"

Iris glanced over at X's capsule. The gently-glowing green pod showed no signs of damage. "Phew..." she sighed. "It looks OK."

"Well, that's good," Snake Man said. "Why don't we open it up and get X back in business?"

Iris looked the capsule over; it seemed to be totally solid. "Uh-oh... I don't think this capsule has a lock for us to undo!" she said. "How are we gonna-"

Suddenly, the whole island shook. "Whaaaagh!" Iris cried as she fell on her back.

"Now what?!" Snake Man asked.

Over the island's edge came Tunnel Rhino, coated in magma and snarling menacingly. "I'll take that!" he huffed as he punched Snake Man out and snatched the capsule.

"Hey, you!" Iris yelled as she pointed her I-Buster at Rhino. "That isn't yours!!!"

"Shut up!" Rhino growled as he reached for Iris. "You're comin' too!!!"

"Hey, fleabag!" Sharon yelled as she leaped in and stood by Iris. "Are you askin' for a second round?!"

Tunnel Rhino growled angrily and retracted his hand. "Hmmm..." he grunted. "You are pretty powerful... Perhaps I should quit while I'm ahead. Yeah!" Suddenly, the wheels on his feet whirred in reverse and he flew down the exit tunnel.

"No! He's getting away with X!!!" Iris cried as she ran after the roving rhino.

"Hold on, Iris! I'm comin' too!" Sharon yelled. "Prof, Darren and you stay here. We'll be back with X's capsule before you know it!"

"You don't have to tell us twice," Smith said as he sat down on the ground. Sharon grinned and charged off after Iris.

* * *

Iris ran down the tunnel, trying her hardest not to lose sight of Tunnel Rhino. "Come back here!!!" Iris yelled. "Leave my friends alone!!!"

"I'm not bein' employed to leave people alone!!!" Rhino snarled as he launched more of his drills. Iris leaped over them, charged her I-Buster and fired. The blast destroyed the wheel on Rhino's right foot, and he peeled out and hit the ground, dropping the capsule in the process. "Gr-graaagghhh!!!" he roared with frustration.

"Now it's a fair fight!" Iris said as she targeted Tunnel Rhino again.

"Oh, is it, now?!" Rhino chuckled. "Well, then you won't mind if I do THIS!!!" He slammed his drill into the tunnel wall, and a geyser of lava spilled out into the tunnel. A stream of molten rock ran over Iris's feet, and she cried out in pain and hopped onto the wall. "Ha!" Rhino smirked. "I know where all the lava pockets are in this cave! You'll never beat me!!!"

"Oh, yeah?!" Sharon yelled as she flew out of the darkness and stomped through the lava to her friend's aid. "Iris, hop on!"

"Sharon!" Iris cried. "What're you going to do?!"

"It's not what I'm gonna do," Sharon chuckled. "It's what WE'RE gonna do!"

Iris hopped on Sharon's back, and they ran at Tunnel Rhino. "Great! I'm fighting a totem pole now!!!" Rhino laughed. "Let's see how you fare against a WALL of magma!!!"

Rhino stomped his foot in the lava, and a huge wave picked up and surged right towards the girls. "Ahh! That's gonna hurt!" Iris yelled.

"I'll just blast through it!" Sharon shouted as she raised her arm cannon.

"What happens when you shoot lava, anyway?" Iris asked.

"...You know, I have no idea," Sharon replied. With that, she fired a powerful shot.

As soon as the blast touched the lava wave, something very strange happened; the magma wrapped around the shot and merged with it, creating a gigantic fireball that went ripping back towards Tunnel Rhino . "Ahhh ha ha ha haaa!!!" Rhino laughed as the flames engulfed him. "You idiot! I'm built to withstand this kind of heat! You won't be burning me any time soon!!!"

Suddenly, Rhino's drill arm melted. "...Wh-what?!" Rhino yelled as he looked at his molten stump of a limb. "What's this?!"

"Everything melts if it's hot enough," Sharon chuckled. "Looks like we just passed your limit!"

"N-NO!!!" Rhino yelled as his other arm melted, and then the horn on his nose. After the fireball had subsided, all that was left of the Maverick was a melting, sputtering metal skeleton. "Y-y-y-y-you..." he gurgled. "A-a-agh..."

"Take it, Iris!" Sharon said.

"Right!" Iris said as she charged her I-Buster and fired. The blast blew throughTunnel Rhino like a marble going through a wet tissue. What was left of him clattered to the ground, emitting thin whisps of smoke.

"Yeah! We did it!" Sharon cheered.

"Sharon, you and I make a pretty good team," Iris said as she looked down at her ride. "What the heck was that stunt you pulled?!"

"Hey, I didn't know the lava would react to my S-Buster shots like that," Sharon said. "But I'm sure glad!" She looked around and the foot-deep puddle of magma they were standing in. "So, uh, how're we going to clean this up so the others can get through?"

"I have an idea," Iris answered as her armor color changed from blue and red to green and yellow. "If we cool this magma down, we'll turn it back into rock, right?"

"...But we don't have any ice weapons," Sharon pointed out.

"Wind works, too!" Iris said as she aimed her I-Buster at the lava. "Double Cyclone!" Iris shot a barrage of wind into the pool, and it slowly turned back into solid rock. Sharon pulled herself out and set Iris down so she could cool off any other lava that was still simmering.

"I've gotta hand it to you, Iris," Sharon said. "You're a quick thinker."

"I kind of had the idea from what you did," Iris said. "There are other ways to use weapons than just firing them at the enemies..."

"Well, thanks," Sharon chuckled as she scratched her head. "I'm kinda embarrassed now..."

"By the way," Iris said. "How come you've got fireproof armor? You said you were built to be..."

"I know," Sharon answered. "After Smith hired me at the museum, I found some old armor in the basement. Smith said that it was an armor that he'd made, but it didn't do much, so I could have it. Heh. I didn't know it was fireproof until some chemicals blew up in my face and I didn't get burned."

"Well, thank goodness," Iris said. "You sure are lucky."

"Yeah," Sharon said. "What's weird, though, is how much it looks like the legendary Zero's armor..."

"I guess Professor Smith based it off of Zero," Iris replied. "At least, that's what it looks like..."

"Iris! Sharon!" Darren called as Snake Man, Professor Smith and he came running down the tunnel. "Is everything all right?!"

"Yeah," Sharon answered. "We totally fried that Rhino!"

"More importantly, we still have X," Iris said as she rolled the capsule over to the group. "We can't get it open, though..."

"Hmm..." Smith said as he looked over the capsule. "Let me take a crack at this. Iris, don't forget to take Tunnel Rhino's weapon drive."

As Smith fiddled with the capsule, Iris walked over to the smoldering pile of scrap that had been Tunnel Rhino. She dug around inside and found a small cube, like the ones that Storm Owl and Armored Armadillo had given her. "This must be it," she said as she inserted the cube into her I-Buster's compartments. Instantly her armor changed to light blue and yellow. "Huh?" she asked.

"I think you just got Rhino's Tornado Fang attack," Sharon remarked. "That's the three-drill shooting, remember? You can probably put that to use outside of battle, too."

"What's the verdict, Professor?" Darren asked as Smith fumbled with the capsule.

"This was pretty well-built," Smith concluded. "It's rigged so it looks like there's no latch. I've seen capsules like this before, though... There's always a secret opening place..."

Smith felt around on the capsule for a moment, then jammed his thumb into the space just above X's left arm. A door appeared on the capsule and it slid open with a hiss, venting steam every which way.

"Wow... Amazing..." Darren said. "So, this is how a Reploid emerges from a capsule..."

The steam cleared, and everyone looked at X anxiously. Ever so slowly, he began to stir. He groaned quietly, then sat up and rubbed at his eyes. "Where... Where am I?..." he asked in a familiar voice.

"X!" Iris said happily. "It's me, X! You're free!"

X turned and looked at Iris for a moment. "...Iris?" he asked. "Yeah..."

"...What's up, X?" Iris asked. "You seem kinda groggy..."

"Hibernation sickness, I think," Smith said. "He'll get over it pretty quickly, though."

"C'mon, pal, let's get you out of there," Sharon said as Darren and she took X by the arms and lifted him out of the capsule.

X took a few steps, rubbed his eyes, blinked a few times and looked back at Iris. "Iris!" he exclaimed as he gave her a big hug. "It's so good to see you!!!"

"It's good to see you too, X," Iris replied as she returned the hug. "It's been too long..."

"But... I don't understand," X said as he stepped back. "You're alive? How?"

"What?!" Iris asked. "What do you mean? You've been sending me transmissions! You asked me to come and find you!"

"I... I did?..." X asked. "...Sorry, I don't remember..."

"That's all right," Smith said. "You'll recall everything in time."

"Who are you?" X asked. "Are you all friends of Iris?"

Iris quickly introduced each person to X before focusing on the task at hand. "OK, X, we're here to find Zero, too," Iris said. "You remember Zero, right?"

"Heh heh heh," X chuckled wryly. "Come on, I haven't lost my long-term memory. Yes, Zero is here."

"Great!" Darren said. "Lead us to him, man!"

"All right, I will," X replied. "But I'm a little worried..."

"What's wrong?" Snake Man asked.

"I was part of a machine that was generating a force field around the area where Zero is sealed," X said. "Now that I've been removed, the force field's gone as well. We have to hurry, before anything unpleasant gets there."

"Unpleasant?" Darren asked. "You know about Ribosome, X? He's the one who's after Iris!"

"I don't know any Ribosome," X replied with a shake of his head. "But I can feel something evil in this cave..."

"That's probably Ribosome anyway," Sharon answered. "I don't know him either, but the prof says he's a bad guy. That's all I need to know!"

"We can't let anything disturb Zero's capsule," X said. "If Zero is released, the Maverick Virus will run rampant again!"

"No worries," Darren said as he pulled out the syrum cube. "We built the syrum for that, just like you asked."

"...I did?" X asked.

"...Never mind," Darren chuckled halfheartedly.

"So, let's get goin'!" Sharon snapped. "The longer we stand around yakkin', the more time Ribosome has to snatch Zero! And when he's got him, he'll come after us!"

"Sharon's right," Iris said. "Come on, X! Take us to Zero!"

"Yes," X answered as he broke into a sprint. "This way, everyone! Follow me!"

Everyone raced after X down the long, dark tunnel.


	10. The Devil Hath Power

**CHAPTER 10**

**THE DEVIL HATH POWER...**

"How far under the ground is Zero buried, X?" Sharon asked as the six travellers raced through the dark earthen tunnels. Their chests heaved and sweat poured from their brows; it was getting hotter by the second.

"We're almost there, miss Sharon," X replied. "His capsule's at the magma falls."

"Please!" Sharon snorted. "Nobody's ever called me that in my life! It's just Sharon, bud."

"Magma falls?" Darren asked.

"Yes," X replied. "It's a huge crevice where a sea of lava tumbles even deeper into the earth..."

"Umm..." Professor Smith gulped. "How, exactly, are we going to get over that?!"

X thought for a moment, then suddenly felt very stupid. "...I don't know," he admitted. "I could make the jump just fine, but..."

"Don't worry, X," Iris replied. "I have an idea! Leave it to me!"

"...All right," X answered. "...I haven't seen you since the Erasure Incident, Iris. How've you been?"

"It's a long story," Iris panted. "I'll tell you all about it later."

"It's getting hotter and hotter..." Snake Man wheezed. "I'm going to melt if it gets any worse!"

"Don't worry," X called back. "Once we reach the magma falls, it gets a lot cooler!"

"And when would that be?..." Darren gasped.

Suddenly, the party emerged from the tunnel and entered a humongous room. The walls stretched out for thousands of meters either way, and the ceiling went so high it was nearly invisible. The party stood on an outcropping overlooking a miraculous sight; an entire ocean of molten rock, stretching as far as the eye could see, and tumbling over a ledge on their right-hand side into a smokey, steaming abyss. The sulfuric stench was almost unbearable.

"It's amazing..." Darren gasped as he grabbed his nose. "...And yet, it's horrible at the same time."

Smith walked to the ledge and peered down at the rushing lava. "...What a drop..." he said. "I'd say it's about 100 meters down, tops.

"There's our destination," X said as he pointed to a stone outcropping on the other edge of the sea.

"...Zero?" Iris asked.

X smiled. "...Zero," he answered.

"Why the heck did he seal himself up down here?!" Sharon asked angrily. "Couldn't he use a freakin' cemetery, like normal people?!"

"At first, we kept his capsule at Maverick Hunter HQ," X replied. "But the Mavericks kept breaking in to get at it... We lost a lot of good hunters trying to protect it... Finally, I decided to take matters into my own hands. I brought it down here and put it in a place that only I could get to... Then I sealed myself here too, as part of the security system. It was the only way to ensure that the Mavericks would never get their hands on the virus."

"What a way to go," Darren grumbled. "Well, how do we get over there?"

"I could try swimming across," Sharon said. "...But that current looks nasty... I'd probably go over the edge and into God knows where..."

"I'll activate my Ultimate Armor and fly across the lava," X explained. He strained for a moment, but nothing happened. He tried again, and still nothing happened. "...I guess being in stasis for so long has deactivated my armor for good," he grumbled. "Damn..."

"No worries, X!" Iris said. "I told you I had an idea. All we need to use is something of Professor Smith's. Professor, you brought a travel kit with you, right?"

Smith pulled up his labcoat and took out a medium-sized box. "Right here, Iris," he said.

"Hey, why didn't you tell us you had that?" Darren asked.

"Well, nobody ever asked for it," Smith replied. "Besides, we always got lodgings, or teleported home. So, Iris, what do you need?"

"A tent," Iris answered.

"What?!" Sharon asked. "Have you flipped, Iris?! You can't carry a tent in that thing!"

"You can if it's vacuum-packed," Smith said as he opened the kit. There was a loud hiss, and then a slew of camping supplies spilled out onto the ground. Iris grabbed the cloth tent and looked it over. "Perfect," she said. "There's enough room for all of us."

"What're we going to do?" Snake Man asked.

"Just watch!" Iris said as she fumbled with the tent. She zipped closed one side of it, but left the other side wide open. "...All right, everyone grab onto the open side with both hands!" she declared.

Everybody grabbed onto the tent tightly. "Now, let's make sure we're all facing the other side..." she said as she turned towards the far ledge. "All right," she said. "Now, I'll just make sure my Double Cyclone weapon is set on the gentlest setting possible..."

"Um, Iris, what exactly are we about to do?..." Darren !" Iris commanded.

Without asking, everybody broke into a sprint and fell off the ledge. They plummeted downwards towards the rushing magma sea.

"THIS was your plan?!" Snake Man yelled.

"It's been nice knowing you guys!!!" Sharon cried.

"...NOW!!!" Iris yelled as she fired her Double Cyclone straight into the tent. With a powerful jolt, the tent sailed upwards, away from the hissing liquids below.

"...What?..." Darren asked. "...We're not fried?"

"Ah! I get it!" X exclaimed. "You're propelling us like a balloon! Great thinking, Iris!"

"Sharon taught me that weapons don't just have to be used for fighting," Iris answered. "Now hold on, I'm giving it some more air!"

"Is 'don't look down' the theme of this area?" Snake Man asked nervously.

Iris sailed the tent all the way to the far ledge, where it landed with a bump. Everybody sprawled out on the rocks and panted heavily.

"Land..." Snake Man wheezed. "Dear, sweet land!..."

"Iris, that was really ingenius of you," Darren huffed. "...But forgive me if I never, ever want to do that again."

"Don't worry," Iris answered. "I don't want to, either. So, X, where's Zero?"

"His capsule's in that direction," X said as he pointed off to the right. "Just don't fall back into the lava, OK?"

Everyone ran the way X pointed, and soon enough they came to a large, ovular, metal structure built firmly into the rock. The oval was solid metal, but a large, red Z was painted across its top.

"Zero!" Iris exclaimed as she looked over the capsule. "This has to be him!"

"Pretty funky," Sharon said as she rapped on the metal. "I wonder how much a coffin like this costs?"

"It looks like it's in good shape," Snake man muttered as he looked the pod over. "Let's get it out of here."

"This is great!" Darren exclaimed. "We found Zero! Now this is what I call a happy ending!"

Just then came a loud rumbling from the wall. "...What's that?!" Sharon snarled.

"...It's him," Smith answered. "He's coming. Ribosome..."

"Ribosome?..." Iris asked.

The wall shattered into gravel, and a large, drill-armed Reploid emerged. Behind it walked a grey-haired man in a business suit; his eyes flashed with greed and coldness as he looked over the group and took a long drag of his cigarette.

"...Iris Thorne," Doctor Ivan Ribosome said. "So, at last we meet."

"So, YOU'RE Ribosome!" Sharon snarled. "You've got a lotta nerve showing up, after everything you've done!!!"

Ribosome ignored Sharon and continued talking. "You've been very difficult to keep up with, my dear," he said as he paced around each member of the party. "I had to sink a lot of money into capturing you, you know. I had the finest Mavericks from the old days resurrected to complete the task. Regrettably, though, you destroyed every one of them... That's very bad for business."

"Why do you want Iris, anyway?" Darren asked. "She hasn't done anything to you!"

Ribosome stifled a chuckle. "The Reploid has something that I want," he said. "Something very important... But I shan't waste my breath on simpletons. Kindly surrender her, and Mega Man X and Zero as well; they're not as valuable, but I'm sure I can profit from them somehow..."

"Ribosome..." Smith growled. "You haven't changed a bit; you're just as greedy and pushy as ever."

"So, it's you..." Ribosome said as his eyes flashed. "I commend you for hiding from me for so long... But traitors must be dealt with."

"Hey," Sharon growled as everyone crowded around Iris and Smith. "If you want them, you'll have to get past us!"

Ribosome chuckled darkly. "No... No, I won't," he replied. "You'll understand soon enough. Meanwhile, though, I think it's time for Zero and I to be going..."

"What do you mean?" Iris asked.

"Zero isn't a threat to me," Ribosome said. "Now is the perfect time to take him. As for you, though... Hmm. It really doesn't matter what condition Iris is in when I finally have her..."

Ribosome walked over to his drilling Reploid and hit a few buttons on its side; its chest opened, Ribosome climbed in and it slammed shut. Two large jet boosters emerged from the back and the Reploid soared up into the air. Two huge grappling cables shot out of the Reploid's sides and yanked Zero's capsule clean out of the rock.

"Hey!!!" X yelled. "You can't do that! You don't know how dangerous it is!!!"

"Well, this concludes our meeting," Ribosome's voice boomed from the Reploid. "I would stay and discuss things further, but I have a luncheon to attend. If you need anything else, kindly ask my assistant. He should be along any moment now." The Reploid soared up to the rock ceiling, drilled a hole and vanished.

"Dammit!!!" Sharon yelled. "Just when we think we're done with this lousy adventure, THIS has to happen!!!"

"Zero..." Iris choked.

"Don't worry, Iris," Darren reassured his friend. "We'll get him back. Professor, you worked for Ribosome, right? Do you know where he would take Zero?"

"I'm not entirely sure," Smith said as he scratched his head. "CONSTRICT has a lot of branches... We should get back to the museum and start researching immediately!"

"Well, first things first..." Darren said as he looked around. "How do we get out of here?"

"Ribosome must have made a tunnel to get down here," X observed. "Let's follow it back to the surface."

"Good idea..." Iris said as she looked towards the tunnel.

"Hang on!" Snake Man said as he stuck his tongue out and listened. "I can hear something in there..."

"What?" Sharon asked. "What is it?"

Snake Man listened a moment longer. "...Footsteps..." he whispered. "...And they're coming this way..."

Everyone listened anxiously as the footsteps came into earshot. Somebody really WAS coming down the tunnel.

"(Who do you think it is?)" Darren whispered.

"(I dunno,)" Sharon said as she readied her gun. "(...But I'm not taking any chances!)"

"Those footsteps..." Iris said as she listened. "I've heard them before..."

Everyone watched the tunnel as the footsteps grew loud. Just then, a figure emerged from the darkness; he was tall and buff and wearing an old Repliforce uniform and cap. He looked around cautiously, like a panther stalking prey.

"My God..." X gasped. "It's... It's Colonel..."

"Colonel?..." Darren asked. "THE Colonel?..."

"B... Brother?..." Iris said aloud.

Colonel turned and looked at Iris, and his face lit up with joy. "...Iris," he said happily.

"Brother!!!" Iris cried happily as she ran to Colonel and threw her arms around him.

"Iris..." Colonel said as he returned the hug. "It's so good to see you..."

"I always hoped I'd see you again one day," Iris sighed. "This is wonderful... Now we just have to help Zero, and things will be perfect again..."

From a distance, everyone watched the spectacle.

"Isn't that nice..." Snake Man said. "I always love watching siblings..."

"Well, it looks like we might be gettin' another person to help us out!" Sharon chuckled. "Ain't that great, prof?... Prof?"

Professor Smith was eyeing Colonel suspiciously and scratching his chin. "I don't know..." he said. "This seems kind of fishy to me..."

"...And then Ribosome took Zero's capsule and flew away..." Iris finished as she still clutched Colonel tightly. "We have to save him!... You'll help us, won't you, Brother?..."

"Yeah, you're right..." Darren agreed with Smith. "Haven't we run into Colonel... somewhere... before...?" His eyes widened in horror as he realized what was going on. "Oh, no..."

"What?!" Sharon asked. "What is it?!"

"Of course I'll help you," Colonel said to Iris as he slowly reached down and drew a beam saber. "In fact... Why don't you leave it all up to me..."

"Iris, wait!!!" Darren yelled as he ran as fast as he could towards them, but stumbled and fell.

"...Darren?..." Iris asked as she turned around and looked at her fallen friend.

"Iris!!!" Darren cried as he looked up at her. "That's not Colonel!!!"

"What are you talking about, Darren? Of course it's my brother," Iris replied. "What's wrong?"

"...And you can take a nice, long nap!..." Colonel cackled as he raised the sword and flashed a murderous grin.

"IRIS!!!" Darren yelled as 'Colonel' plunged his sword into Iris's back. Iris screamed in agony and sank to her knees.

"Heh heh heh..." 'Colonel' chuckled as he stepped away. "My GOD, you're a sucker! How was that?! I should be on Broadway!"

"Urrrrgghhhh..." Iris groaned as she struggled to get up. "B... Brother?..."

"Iris, that isn't Colonel!" Darren said as he helped her stand. "Donnerstag gave us Colonel's control chip, remember?! This CAN'T be him!!!"

"You're pretty smart for a waterbag," 'Colonel' laughed as he pointed his sword at Darren. "This is perfect! Killin' humans is way more fun than killin' Reploids; they splatter a lot more!"

"Agh! I know who you are!!!" X yelled. "Vile!!!"

"Heh heh heh..." Vile laughed as he looked at X. "So, you're here too, X? Wonderful! Let's get this blood bath started! HA!!!" He quickly lifted his leg and kicked Darren back into his friends.

Iris just sat on her knees, staring up at Vile. "I... I don't understand..." Iris whispered. "...Why?..."

"Iris! Get out of there!!!" Snake Man yelled.

"What's wrong with Iris?!" Sharon asked. "Why isn't she moving?!"

"Shock," Smith growled. "If you just got betrayed by someone who looked like someone you loved, you'd be like that, too."

"Heh! Well, it looks like you want another helping!" Vile laughed as he looked down at Iris. "I'd be glad to oblige!!!" He took his sword and raised it for another blow.

"Iris!!!" Smith yelled. "Fight back!!!"

Iris looked up and saw the blade coming. In a flash, her Z-Saber blocked the slice and sparks flew everywhere.

"Heh!" Vile laughed. "So, you've got Zero's saber, huh?! Good! We'll have a nice sword fight before I take you apart! HA!!!"

Vile drove Iris back with a series of stabs and slashes. Iris, still partly in shock, could do nothing but block and deflect.

"Come on, Iris! You have to fight him!!!" Sharon yelled. "He's gonna kill you!!!"

"Yeah! Come on, girlie!" Vile sneered. "Let's see whatcha got!"

"N'gahh!" Iris grunted as she deflected one more swipe, then dove in to stab Vile's chest.

Suddenly, Iris stopped dead. "You would really attack me?" Colonel's voice asked her. Iris hesitated for a moment, then lowered her sword.

"Iris, no!!!" Darren yelled. "Don't let him get to you!!!"

Vile laughed again. "I do pretty good impressions, too!" He said. "Well, then! Time for some FUN!!!"

With one clean swipe, Iris's hand fell to the ground with a sick thump. Zero's Z-Saber rolled away and tumbled into the magma falls.

Iris flinched for a moment, then shrieked in pain and agony as she grasped at the gushing wound.

"Iris!!!" Darren cried. "No!!!"

"Heh heh heh..." Vile chuckled as he picked the severed hand up. With an eerie look on his face, he slowly licked at the blood on the end of it. "Mmmm..." he said. "Nice n' sweet... Just like you! HA!!!" He flicked the hand over the cliff's edge and resumed his fighting stance.

Iris choked and sobbed as she staggered backwards and fell to her knees again, immeasurable pain surging through her body like bolts of lighting.

"You rotten son of a!!!..." Sharon roared as she tried to jump a Vile, but Smith and Snake Man held her back. "I'll rip you apart!!!"

"I'd like to see you try, dollface," Vile laughed as he approached Iris and raised his sword again. "Now... I'll just finish you off in my favorite way: as painfully as possible!"

"Stop!!!" X yelled as he leaped in front of Iris and glared down Vile. "Vile! Your quarrel is with me! Leave Iris out of this!"

Vile laughed darkly. "Ah ha ha!!! You don't get it, do you, X?" he asked. "I don't care WHO I'm killin' as long as I AM killin'! Gettin' rid of you, though, will be a nice bonus!"

"I don't get it," Snake Man said. "Who's Vile, anyway?"

"Vile was one of Sigma's strongest enforcers in the old days," Smith replied. "He fiercely fought X and Zero several times. He was very resiliant, but eventually X was able to get the upper hand and destroy him. Of course, Vile did swear that he would never stop pursuing X, saying that he would haunt him until the day he died..."

"Woah," Snake Man said. "So, he's got a major grudge against X..."

"Hey, shut up over there!!!" Vile shouted. Suddenly, a huge cannon sprouted up from his shoulder and fired a plasma burst just above Iris's friends. They all yelped and covered their heads as rubble crashed down around them.

"...I don't remember Colonel being able to do that," X growled.

"This body's pretty good, but it needed a personal touch!" Vile cackled. "Now, get ready to bite it!!!"

Vile and X went bounding across the cliffside, Vile swinging his blade in decapitating arcs and X trying to slow him down with his plasma shots. They leaped over each other and off the walls as each struggled to gain an edge on the other.

All the while, Iris knelt on the ground, simply staring after them, her damaged limb bleeding profusely. A whirlwind of confused, conflicted emotions raced through her mind. "...Why..." she asked quietly. "...Why?..."

"What the heck is wrong with Iris?!" Sharon asked. "She's just... sitting there!!!"

"Iris was always rather fragile," Smith sighed. "The bout with someone disguised as Colonel has traumatized her. Why she's reacting so negatively, though, is beyond me..."

Darren looked over at the battling Reploids; Vile seemed to be as dangerous as ever, but X was panting heavily and slowing down. "If she doesn't step in soon, X is going to get mutilated," he gulped. "We have to help her!..."

"What can we do?" Sharon asked. "It's not like we can make her want to fight..."

"No..." Darren said. "...But we have to do something!"

Darren ran to Iris and knelt down beside her. "Iris... Are you OK?" he asked.

"Why..." Iris repeated. "Why is my brother doing this.... Tell me, Darren... Please..."

"Iris, that isn't your brother," Darren repeated. "We have Colonel's control chip back at the museum! Another Maverick called Vile is using Colonel's body to fight us... And to top it off, it's really affecting you..."

"Not... Not Colonel?..." Iris asked. "But... But he..."

"Iris, you're so out of it that you don't even feel this anymore!" Darren said as he held Iris's handless arm up with a wince. "Come on! You have to help X stop Vile!"

"I can't..." Iris said quietly. "I can't fight my own brother... I'd never do that..."

"Iris, please," Darren pleaded. "I know you don't like it; hell, even I don't like it. But if you don't jump in, Vile's going to tear us all to shreds!"

"No..." Iris whispered. "Colonel would never do that... He's a good man... Yes... He is..."

"Dammit, Iris!!!" Darren yelled as he grabbed Iris and shook her. "Am I even getting through to you?! If you don't help, Vile will kill us all... And Ribosome will still have Zero! Do you want that to happen?! Please, Iris, you've gotta-"

Darren's speech was interrupted as X slammed into the wall behind him and sank to the ground with wounds all over his body. Vile towered over them, smiling wickedly. "Well, that's the end of one nuisance..." he chuckled.

"No..." X grunted as he forced himself to stand up. "I won't give up!... You're not going to get away with this, Vile... You're totally disgracing Colonel's body by using it this way..."

"Disgrace?" Vile laughed. "Ha! X, you're talking as if I'm actually listening!" He drew his sword again and waved it about. "You know, this is so much fun, I think I'm gonna kill off each one of you reeeeally nastily! I know; I'll chop off all of your limbs before I take your heads off! How about that?!"

"I won't let you!..." X growled as he staggered towards Vile.

"...Shuddup!" Vile laughed as his shoulder cannon blew X back against the wall. He then turned to Darren and grinned. "...I think I know just who to start with!..." he said as he stomped over. "Time for some serious splatter!!!"

Darren gulped as Vile moved towards him with his sword raised, but he refused to leave Iris's side. Iris slowly looked between Darren and Vile. "Hurt..." she whispered. "My brother... wants to... hurt my friends?..."

Vile heard Iris's words and turned an evil eye on her. "Of course, my dear," he said in Colonel's voice. "You were a fool to make friends outside of the Repliforce, and for that, you must all be punished. Just to be kind, I'll save you for last." With that, he threw his head back and laughed psychotically.

"No..." Iris gasped as tears dribbled down her eyes, and her brow knitted. "Brother... I... I don't want you to... I don't want you to hurt my friends... Leave... leave them alone... Leave them alone, Brother..." She was shaking all over with rage and sorrow.

Darren looked down at Iris in surprise. "...Iris?..." he asked. "...Yes! You're almost back!... Just a little more, Iris! You're doing fine!..."

"Ha!" Vile laughed. "I'll kill all of you before she's ready to fight again! Now..."

"I don't think so!!!" Darren yelled as he threw himself at Vile; he grabbed Vile's leg and held on for dear life.

"What the-" Vile huffed as he stomped around. "You rotten pile of flesh! Get off, do you hear me?! GET OFF!!!"

"I think Darren's onto something," Snake Man said.

"What do you guys say?" Smith asked as he looked at his friends. Sharon and Snake Man nodded, and all three of them charged towards Vile with loud war whoops.

"...What's this?!" Vile yelled as Snake Man, Sharon and Professor Smith all leaped on him and started punching or kicking him as hard as they could. "Get off, you rotten little goons!!! Off!!!"

X slowly picked himself out of his impression in the rock wall and looked over at the spectacle. "Wow," he said as he staggered out and readied his X-Buster. "Iris sure has some brave friends..."

"OK, you're all finished!!!" Vile shouted as he activated his shoulder cannon and fired at close range. The explosion blew all four friends off of him, and they all crashed down on the battlefield. "You know what?!" Vile said as he cocked his head to one side in annoyance. "You guys just bought yourselves a really nasty way of going out! And you're all going together!!!"

"Not if I have a say!" X shouted as he shot Vile in the back with a powerful blast. Vile yelled in pain and sank to one knee.

"How... How did you do that?!" Vile snarled as he clawed at the smoking wound on his back.

"Hey, I know a thing or two about Reploid armor..." Smith chuckled as he sat up. "...And I cut yours off just in time!..."

"What?!" Vile asked as he looked down at his front chest plate. Sure enough, a compartment was wide open, and the wires inside were torn from their sockets. "GRRRRRR..." Vile roared. "DAMN YOU!!!" He raised his sword and charged at Professor Smith.

"Leave him alone."

Everyone looked over at Iris. She slowly stood up and targeted Vile with the I-Buster in her undamaged arm. "Leave my friends alone," she stated again.

"Iris! You're OK!!!" Darren cried.

"Ha! So your little friend can fight again!" Vile laughed. "Big deal! I just need to psyche her out again!"

"Did you hear me?!" Iris shouted. "I said leave my friends alone!!!"

"Heh heh heh..." Vile cackled as he put on his best Colonel voice. "Iris, dear, would you really hurt me?..." he crooned.

Iris stood fast, her gun still trained on Vile.

Vile shifted uncomfortably. "Come now, Iris, put it down," he said. "I know you would never shoot me."

Iris remained deathly silent.

Vile began to sweat; without his armor, Iris could easily put a hole in a vital system. "You wouldn't dare!" he growled, his voice beginning to slip. "You wouldn't dare strike me, your own BROTHER!!!"

Iris charged her I-Buster. "...You're not my brother any more," she replied quietly. With one swift movement, she blew Vile's shoulder cannon clean off.

"A-a-agh!!!" Vile gagged as he staggered backwards. "You miserable brat!!!" he yelled, totally casting the Colonel voice aside. "Ha! Go ahead and fire! If you destroy this body, you'll never get the chance to revive your brother! And I know you wouldn't do that! You don't have the guts!!! I don't know WHAT could possess you to destroy the person you hold so dear!!!"

Iris charged her I-Buster again. "You were going to hurt my friends..." she growled as angry tears rolled down her cheeks. "NOBODY hurts my friends!!!"

"What?! No! Wait! Stop!!!" Vile begged as his eyes widened in terror.

"Goodbye... Brother," Iris yelled as she fired again and again and again. Shot after shot tore through Vile until the body wasn't much more than a smoking scrap pile. With one final shot, Iris destroyed the body's head, and the mess teetered over and tumbled into the lava below.

There was a long, thick pause. Finally, Iris lowered her gun and stared down at the ground.

"Iris..." X said. "You... You saved us all..."

"Iris..." Darren said quietly as he walked over to her. "I... You..."

Iris looked at Darren, and her eyes filled up with tears again. Without another word, she collapsed to the ground, crying feverently and striking the earth with her fist.


	11. Revelations

**CHAPTER 11**

**REVELATIONS**

The cold, gray afternoon light shone into the museum as X leaned on a ramp and stared out at the frosty cityscape of St. Paul. A gentle snow was falling, and already the pavement outside was white. "Beautiful..." X said as he looked. "I've always enjoyed snow..."

"If you like being frosty, I guess," Darren replied as he looked, too. "I really don't like it in the summer, though; the humidity is horrible."

"I'm afraid I've been out of the loop for a while," X said as he glanced at Darren. "Would you care to fill me in on the past 100 years, Darren?"

"Sure," Darren answered. "What would you like to know?"

"The last time I was conscious, I had just defeated Sigma (yet again) and sealed Zero up in that cave... That was in 21XX. What's the Maverick situation?"

"Funny you should ask," Darren said as he walked to a bookshelf and grabbed a green-covered book. "Almost as soon as Zero and you sealed yourself away, Maverick activity stopped altogether. No new cases of the Maverick virus were reported."

"Really..." X said as he scratched his chin. "How very strange..."

"You're telling me," Darren replied. "But, aside from a couple of really bad movies, not much has gone on... Oh, wait, there was that lousy president, but they voted him out quick... no... Nope. Not much went on."

"Hmm," X chuckled. "I guess I really didn't miss much."

Just then, Sharon and Snake Man walked into the room. "Hey, guys," Darren said. He then gave Sharon a solemn look. "How is she?" he asked.

"The prof's doing the operation right now," Sharon said. "He gave Iris some pretty heavy drugs to ease the pain. He said he ought to be done in half an hour, if everything goes right."

"(SIGH) Poor Iris..." Darren sighed. "First her brother, and then Zero, and now this..."

X looked away. "...I'm worried, too... But we should also focus on the task at hand; we should figure out how we're going to retrieve Zero from that Ribosome guy," he said.

"Yeah, good idea!" Sharon exclaimed. "First of all, we're gonna need to search for the CONSTRICT, INC buildings around the country. After that, we'll just look and see what kind of stuff they do there... That should give us a pretty good clue of where Ribosome's got Zero!"

"I'd like to help Iris feel better right now," Darren said as he looked around and scratched his chin. "I wonder what I could do..." Just then, his eyes lit up. "Aha! I've got it!!!" With that, he turned and disappeared into the laboratory.

"I wonder what he's up to?" X asked.

"Heh! If he's got Iris to motivate him, it's gonna be something good," Sharon chuckled before quieting. "...Sure hope she's OK..." 

* * *

The world around Iris faded in and out of existence as Iris lay on the operating table, staring up at the fluorescent lights in the ceiling. The pain from her wounds was gone, though her arm gave a reactionary twitch every now and then. She sighed quietly and glanced over at a fuzzy shape that hovered over her right arm.

"Pro... professor..." Iris whispered.

"You're going to be fine, Iris," Professor Smith said as he looked up at her and smiled quietly.

"What... what happened..." Iris asked. "The last thing I remember is... holding onto Darren... and crying... and pain..."

"After your battle, the pain from your... lacerations was so bad that I had to sedate you," Smith answered. "We all crawled out of the cave and came back to the museum. Everyone's doing fine now, thanks to you."

"I... I feel really weird..." Iris said. "It's like I'm as light as a feather..."

"Those would be the drugs," Smith replied. "You're still pretty deluded with them. I'm almost done here; just a little bit longer. Why don't you go back to sleep?"

"Back to sleep..." Iris repeated as tears started to form in her closing eyes. "Yes... Maybe it would be best... if I went back to sleep..."

Smith watched his patient with a concerned look, then went back to his work. Just then, Professor Krein came into the room. "Hey, Ross," he said. "How's it going in here?"

"Pretty well," Smith replied. "Her back was easy to stitch up, and the new hand seems to be responding..." He turned and sighed.

"You don't sound too happy," Krein said. "This is a pretty big accomplishment for someone with only basic Reploid medical knowledge..."

"Iris's body is mendable," Smith said. "...But I don't know if her spirit will be as easy to heal... I can only imagine what she's going through right now..." 

* * *

"So, the world hasn't changed very much in the past hundred years..." X said as he looked outside again. "That's what you say, but I see it differently..."

"Huh?" Sharon asked.

"Look out there," X replied as he motioned outside. "The humans and the Reploids live peacefully, side by side without fear of Mavericks or war... If you ask me, the future is totally different from my time..."

"I see..." Snake Man said. "I guess we really can't tell you how it's changed, since we weren't around back then..."

"It's all right," X said with a smile. "Peace is always good." He glanced down and looked at his calm, blue battle armor. "Perhaps I won't have to stay in this all the time now," he said.

"Probably not, no," Sharon said. "Plus, you'll stick out like a sore thumb. Lemme get you some new threads! Back in a flash!" With that, she took off down the corridor.

"Say, you were built by Albert Wily, right?" X asked as he turned to Snake Man.

"What?" Snake Man gulped. "Well, uh..."

"It's OK," X chuckled. "I'm fine with that. I'm just impressed with how mild-mannered you are. Most of the reports I've read said that Wily's Robot Masters were dangerous, violent machines."

"That's true, to a point," Snake Man replied. "When Professor Smith revived me, he gave me several upgrades. In essence, he changed me from an ordinary robot to a Reploid. It was like being born again... So, I decided to stay around the museum and study to become an archaeologist instead of going out and causing chaos."

"Ah..." X said as he scratched his chin. "So, you rose above your programming... That's neat."

"Hey, Snake Man!" Darren called as he walked back into the room. "Could you come with me, please? I'm working on something and could use your help!"

"OK! Talk to you later, X," Snake Man called back as he started away. "Darren, you're not going to try to build a milkshake machine again, are you?..."

Darren and Snake Man disappeared into a laboratory room, and X turned back to the window.

"OK, I'm back!" Sharon announced as she appeared with a pile of clothes and dropped them in front of X. "Just pick some and try them on!"

X reached into the pile and pulled out a pair of boxer shorts decorated with red hearts. "Errr..." he stammered. 

* * *

Darkness slowly melted into the light as Iris awoke on a cot in the lab. The first thing she noticed was that she was slightly chilly; she glanced down to see that she was clad only in her sub-armor and a warm blanket. She could feel tightly-wrapped bandages around her chest and back, and another wad of them around her lower right arm. As she sat upright, she felt a slight pain in her arm; apparently, the drugs had worn off.

"Oh, good, you're awake!" Smith said as he entered the room. "Everything's just fine, Iris."

Iris looked up at Professor Smith. "Professor..." she said. "My... my armor..."

"Your armor was kind of messed up from the fight, so I gave it to Professor Olson; he'll patch it right up," Smith answered. "...He'll have to mend your sub-armor later, too."

Iris glanced at her shoulder; sure enough, her sub-armor had a few rips and tears from the scrape with Vile. She then looked further down, back to the bandages.

"I made your new hand exactly like your old one," Smith pointed out. "It should be good to go in a few hours, same as your back."

Iris only half-heard what Smith had said. She continued to sadly stare at the bandages.

"...If you don't like it, I could outfit you with a hook," Smith chuckled.

Tears began to well up in Iris's eyes again.

"I'm sorry," Smith said quietly. "Now isn't the time..."

"No..." Iris answered. "That was funny... But how this happened to begin with..."

"Can you stand up?" Smith asked. "It'd be good for you to get up and walk."

Iris struggled off of the bed and stood up on wobbly, tired legs. She staggered for a moment, then toppled backwards.

"Woah!" Smith cried as he quickly grabbed Iris. "Easy, there!"

Iris slowly regained her posture, then took a few steps away from Smith. In a few moments, she was walking normally again.

"Great," Smith said. "Just take it easy and let your wounds heal... In the meantime, you need some other clothes... I found some acceptible ones while you were asleep. Why don't you try them on in the storage room?"

Iris found a large, green t-shirt, black sweatpants, shoes and socks in the back room and changed into them immediately. They were a little big, but she didn't care at the moment. "Great," Smith said when Iris emerged. "I'm glad they fit. Oh!..." He reached into his labcoat and pulled out a familiar red garment. "Here's your beret, too."

"Thanks..." Iris said quietly as she took the beret and left the room. Her muddled mind was full of questions, and tears seemed ready to spill from her eyes on a whim. Looking around for a place to sit in peace and quiet, she spied the outdoor fountain. Quietly and slowly, she made her way out into the cold, dark blue evening, sat down on the fountain's cement bowl and hung her head. 

* * *

"Well, I guess you look OK..." Sharon said as she scratched her chin. "Yeah, you're fine."

X was dressed in loose khakis and a blue t-shirt. He glanced down and evalutated himself. "You really think so?" he asked. "I don't look too dorky, do I?"

"No more than the guy who owns those clothes," Sharon chuckled. Just then, she looked out the window and saw Iris sitting miserably at the fountain. "...Hey, what the..." Sharon said as she started for the door.

"Wait," X said quickly.

Sharon turned around and eyed X questioningly. "Whaddya mean?" she asked.

"Iris has a lot of things to sort out," X answered. "I think it's best if we give her some space..."

"No way!" Sharon snapped. "We're her friends! We should help her through whatever's ailin' her!"

"Trust me on this," X said. "She needs some alone time... She'll come to us when she's ready."

Sharon glared at X for a minute more, then sighed crossly. "Oh, all right..." she surrendered. "I just hope she CAN get through it..." 

* * *

Iris sat at the fountain in silence, reflecting on her miseries as the chilly twilight winds blew over her. Questions upon questions lurked in her mind, each as equally painful as the last. She hugged herself for warmth and looked out into the oncoming night. She couldn't help but feel a kinship with the scene; she had also grown cold and dark.

"This is my own twilight..." Iris whispered. "My brother has betrayed me, Zero is gone and I'm locked in endless conflict... Why was I brought back into such a terrible world...?"

"It's not all that bad, is it?..." a voice asked.

Iris turned to see Professor Smith standing next to the fountain, his labcoat buttoned up and an old fedora on his head. He offered her a leather jacket with a quiet smile. "You'll catch a cold out here," he said.

"I could care less right now..." Iris sighed. "My life is a disaster... I seem to be doomed to betrayal and heartbreak, no matter where I am... It happened 100 years ago, and it's happening again now..."

"There's a big difference between 21XX and now," Smith said as he offered the coat to Iris again. "This time, you have someone who'll listen."

Iris looked at Professor Smith thoughtfully for a moment, then slowly slipped on the warm jacket. After another moment, she let Smith take her hand and lift her off of the fountain.

"Let's take a walk," Smith said as he motioned towards the sidewalk. "Just around St. Paul. How about it? It would do us both some good."

Iris looked down the empty St. Paul streets. A light snow was beginning to fall, and the curbside lampposts sparkled with warm light from their freshly adorned Christmas decorations. Off to the right and behind the museum, the Mississippi River flowed, gentle and hidden in the darkness.

"...All right," Iris answered quietly. She took Smith's hand and the two of them walked off down the street. 

* * *

Iris and Professor Smith walked to the Ramsey County court building. "This building's been here for as long as anyone can remember," Smith said as they walked in, entered an empty courtroom and sat down. "It's still used today for hearings and such..."

"Dispensing justice and upholding the law..." Iris sighed. "That's just like my brother..."

Smith glanced over at Iris again. "Tell me a little about the Colonel," he said. "I've read about him in the history books, but I'd like to hear your story..."

"My brother?..." Iris asked. "All right... My brother was a prominent member of the Repliforce army; several awards and acheivements, second in command to the General himself... A soldier's soldier. Everyone looked up to him... Especially me."

"Hmmm," Smith answered with a nod.

"Our creator wasn't exactly the nicest person," Iris sighed. "He expected me to behave 'properly and lady-like,' like a 19th-century housewife. When I decided to join Repliforce along with Colonel, he almost had a fit. From then on, my brother was the only family I had..."

"I see..." Smith answered. "Seeing how close you were, I... I guess it must have been devastating when Colonel became a Maverick..."

"What?!" Iris asked angrily as she stood up and glared at Professor Smith.

"My history books say that the entire Repliforce army became a gang of Mavericks almost overnight," Smith repeated.

"No way! No! Never!" Iris protested as she balled her fists and shook her head furiously. "That's so wrong!!! Nobody at Repliforce was ever a Maverick!!!"

"That's why I wanted to hear your side," Smith replied. "Please, calm down and finish." He glanced around at the courtroom. "You're not on trial, you know."

"All right..." Iris said as she took a few breaths and sat down again. "I made good friends with a lot of the officers in Repliforce, like Storm Owl and some others... Of course, things really changed once I got a position with the Maverick Hunters, spotting for the legendary Mega Man X, and my brother's friend Zero."

"And so it began..." Smith answered.

"Colonel had known Zero for a while," Iris said. "They were friends... Good friends... However, my brother didn't like Zero's merciless combat methods... So, he forbade me from interacting with him any more than my job permitted..."

"Colonel told you that you couldn't be friends with Zero?" Smith asked. "That's kind of harsh..."

"He was just trying to protect me, I suppose..." Iris sighed. "He thought that if I became friends with Zero, something awful might happen..."

Smith nodded quietly.

"I trusted my brother more than anyone, but telling me that I couldn't socialize with someone... He sounded just like our creator. When I realized this, I decided that perhaps I should start thinking for myself a little more..."

"...So, you went and became friends with X and Zero anyway," Smith said.

"Yes..." Iris said. "...And for what it's worth, that was the best time of my life. Spotting for them on missions, making sure they got the jobs done... It was wonderful. However, that was all about to change...

"My brother was a brave and proud warrior, but he was also hotheaded and arrogant. When Zero asked if Repliforce was responsible for the destruction of a major city, Colonel started a military coup in rage... They battled on and on, my brother too insulted to surrender and Zero too focused on his mission to consider other options..."

"So, neither of them would back down," Smith said. "That's terrible... But if two sides want to fight, you can't hold them back; it's like trying to stop the tides."

"I learned that..." Iris said as her head drooped even more. "I learned that the hard way... Finally, in their battle at the Repliforce space docks, Zero finally defeated my brother and slew him... That's when my world crashed down around me..."

"That's when you went and did it," Smith replied. "You made the decision that cost you everything..."

"Yes..." Iris said as her voice started to crack. "It's like something went off inside of me when I learned that my brother was dead... And... I couldn't control myself... I had to avenge him, even if it meant killing someone I'd... grown to love... I tried to kill the only person who loved me as much as Colonel did..." She choked back a sob. "But as soon as I realized what I was doing, it was too late... And then all went dark..."

"There, there..." Smith said as he calmly patted Iris on the back. "It's OK..."

"No, it's not OK..." Iris replied. "I went out in the way I was told never to go... Nobody ever wanted me to be a fighter, not even me... But then... And look at me now..." She paused to look down at her bandaged hand. "I feel like them... My brother... Zero..."

"Iris, there are many kinds of fighting," Smith said. "Some fights are based in greed, or selfishness. However, when you battle for something you truly believe in... That's something completely different."

"...Huh?..." Iris asked.

"All fighting is wrong; there's no denying that," Smith said. "But fighting for a good cause... That takes something special. When you fight for something you hold dear, it's no longer just about who wants what... It's about spirit, character, and the desire to set things right... Iris, all this time, you've been fighting to find your long-lost friends... And friendship is worth every drop of sweat you put into it."

"Hmmm..." Iris sighed as she looked at Smith. "But I wonder... Even after going against him in so many things, would my brother be proud of me?..."

Smith rubbed Iris's shoulder and smiled at her. "Your spirit is strong, and that's what he always admired in you," he answered. "I think he would be proud to call you his sister." 

Iris looked at Smith with a sad smile. "Thanks, Professor..." she said. "I guess... I guess I feel a little better..."

"Why don't we head out and walk a little more?" Smith asked as he put his fedora back on. "It's getting near dinner time, and I know a great little restaurant a few blocks from here. We can keep talking there..."

"Well..." Iris said as she rubbed her stomach. "I do feel a little hungry..."

"Great," Smith said. "Let's go."

Once again, Professor Smith and Iris set foot into the night. 

* * *

A few minutes later, Iris and Professor Smith were at a booth at the Little Luna Diner. Smith happily chewed at a cheeseburger while Iris quietly sipped hot cocoa. "Hey, is this place good eating or what?" Smith asked as he munched.

"Yes, it's very nice," Iris admitted. "So empty and quiet, too..."

"This place is a pretty well-kept secret," Smith replied. "Only a select few know the location, and it doesn't advertise."

"Really?" Iris asked. "Then how does it stay in business?"

"The people that do come in come here a lot," Smith said with a grin. "Heck, I come here at least once every day myself!"

"I understand why," Iris replied. "The food is wonderful... I'll have to try the pork chops next time."

"So," Smith said as he sat back in his booth. "Feel like talking about anything else?"

"Well..." Iris said as she looked at her mug. "...I've been wondering... I'm sure Zero did other things after I... you know... Do you know anything about it?"

"Me?..." Smith asked as he scratched his chin. "Well, I'm only 35, Iris... The only things I'd know are what's already printed in the history books..."

"Well, could you tell me anyway?" Iris asked.

"All right," Smith answered. "Let's see... Sigma and a mysterious mercenary named Dynamo sent the Eurasia space colony on a crash course with Earth, which I told you about before... In the wake of the colony's crash, all the books really say is that Zero became increasingly cold and more violent after the 'Repliforce Affair,' as it came to be known. Some people even say that he went Maverick for a brief period of time..."

"Maverick?..." Iris asked. "Well, X did tell me that Zero was built by Dr. Wily... But... But X seems to think-"

"Well, I'd take X's word over a book's," Smith said. "X and Zero battled a mad scientist named Gate immediately after the colony crash. When that adventure was done, nothing else is written about Zero, and X disappears soon after, too. Maybe Zero decided to lock himself up and cleanse himself of whatever virus was inside of him?"

"I... I guess..." Iris said. "I mean, it sounds strange, but Zero wouldn't want anyone to be hurt on his behalf... That's why he was a one-man Hunter unit..."

"Hmm..." Smith said as he scratched his chin.

"Professor, if we get Zero back..." Iris said quietly. "...Will he even want anything to do with me anymore?..."

"What do you mean?" Smith asked.

"During our battle on the Repliforce Weapon, I ruined everything..." Iris said sadly. "The trust, the friendship... I shattered it like glass... I still remember the look he gave me as I began my attack; it was one of betrayal and heartbreak..." She slumped forward, put her elbows on the table and sighed. "If we do reawaken him, he might still think I want to avenge my brother, or make a utopia for Reploids only..."

"Do you?" Smith replied.

"No... Not now, never again..." Iris said as she shook her head. "My brother's death is hard, but I'm learning to accept it... And during our adventures, I've learned that humans are in no way inferior to Reploids... I've changed a lot... I'm not the selfish girl he defeated on that space station any more..."

"Well," Smith said as he sat back in his chair. "From what you've told me, Zero cared deeply about you. I believe that if you talk to him, he'll listen."

Iris looked up. "You... You think so?" she asked.

"No matter how angry or frustrated someone is with another person, talking can always help," Smith said with a smile. "Hey, if you're as good at talking with him as you are at talking with me, you won't have any problems."

"Are you sure?..." Iris asked.

"I guarantee it," Smith answered with a nod.

"Thanks, Professor..." Iris said quietly.

"Why don't we continue our walk and loose some of the calories from this meal?" Smith asked as the waitress placed a bill on the table.

"That sounds great," Iris said as she reached for the paper.

Smith grabbed the check before Iris could. "My treat," he chuckled.

Iris beamed. 

* * *

Iris and Professor Smith left the Little Luna and walked along the edge of the city. Below them was Interstate 94, which ran beneath the city on its way east towards Wisconsin.

"That sure is a long road..." Iris said as she looked down and watched the cars roll by.

"Yeah," Smith said as he looked down. "Interstate 94 starts in Wyoming and travels all the way to Illinois. That's a big road trip..."

"Amazing," Iris said. "You'd never see something this long around the old Maverick Hunter headquarters..." She paused and turned to Smith. "Professor, you told me once that you used to work for Dr. Ribosome..."

"Yes, that's right," Smith said as he glanced around. "Why?"

"Well, you said that you quit after discovering the new project that Ribosome was working on," Iris said. "And when we met at Zero's capsule, he called you 'traitor...' What was that project about, that he would call you such a thing?"

"What was it about?" Smith asked as he nervously scratched his head. "Errr..."

"It might help us when we go to get Zero back," Iris said. "Please, tell me?"

"Hmm..." Smith said as he scratched his chin. "Ribosome hired me many years ago because of my skill with Reploid maintenence... I helped him with several projects, including resurrecting Armored Armadillo, whom I befriended. However, even though I was paid well, I didn't like the man; he was greedy, pompous and egotistical. No matter how high his profits were, he always wanted more...

"One day, Ribosome came to me with a new assignment: a secret project to find an old, powerful weapon and make it useable. At first, I went at it, like I usually do, but eventually I got curious about the weapon. I did some research on it, and found that it was far too dangerous for Ribosome to get his hands on..."

"It was that dangerous, huh?" Iris asked.

"Terribly dangerous," Smith repeated. "Not only that, but the circumstances surrounding the weapon's use... Well, they were too serious to ignore. So, after reading all this, I resolved to halt the project so Ribosome would never get ahold of it. To make sure that he couldn't get someone else to finish any work I'd left behind on the weapon, I stole a piece of it and slipped away. I've been able to hide from Ribosome, thanks to my job at the museum. Of course, now that he knows where I am..."

"That's terrible..." Iris said. "But if this weapon's as dangerous as you say it is, then I think you did the right thing."

Smith looked down at Iris with a sad kind of smile. "Thanks," he said. "I hope so, too." He glanced around. "It's getting colder... Why don't we head back to the museum?"

"...OK..." Iris replied as she adjusted her jacket. "Lead the way, Professor..." 

* * *

Professor Smith and Iris turned another corner and headed back towards the museum. As they walked, Smith pointed out an old-looking brick building. "That's the Dorothy Day center," he said. "Homeless people and Reploids go there to get meals and stay warm."

"That's good..." Iris said. "The owners must be very kind..." She paused and sighed sadly.

"What's wrong, Iris?" Smith asked.

"Do you remember when I said that I've changed?" Iris asked. "It's true. But... It's not all good change..."

"Hmm?" Smith asked.

"During this adventure, I've made so many new friends and learned so much..." Iris started. "But I've done a lot of bad things, too... I've learned to fight... I've killed on many occasions without a second thought... It must have hurt when I destroyed them... I know how it feels to die like that..."

"Iris..." Smith said quietly.

"I know that Ribosome sent those Mavericks for his own ambitions, but I can't help but feel bad for killing them..." Iris sighed. "Morph Moth, Frost Walrus, Tunnel Rhino... I killed them without regret, or feeling... When I watched Armored Armadillo die trying to protect us, I realized this... And I haven't forgotten about how badly Darren was injured when he protected us from Fefnir... That was my fault, too..."

Smith nodded in understanding, but said nothing.

Iris turned to Smith with a sad look. "Professor... Even with those deaths on my conscience... Even with all the people I've hurt, the suffering I've brought... Am... Am I still a good person?..."

Smith gave Iris a long, hard look. He was about to say something when a cold gust of wind blew through the street. Iris shivered and gripped her jacket for warmth, and then she spotted something.

Under a nearby street lamp sat a young, human girl wearing only the thinnest of clothing. She shivered profusely as she huddled near the lamp, hoping to be warmed from the light. A sign on the nearby door of the Dorothy Day Center read "FULL." The girl must have been too late to get in for dinner that night.

Iris walked over to the trembling girl and looked down at her. "You poor thing..." she said quietly. "All alone out here in the dark and cold..."

The girl was so cold that she didn't even hear Iris.

Iris removed her jacket and gently put it on the shivering figure. The girl looked up at Iris and smiled shyly. "Th-thank you..." she stammered.

"You're welcome," Iris replied.

Just then, the center's door opened and a man came out. "We've got an extra place!" he called. "You can come in, Katiana!"

"OK!" the girl said. She looked back at Iris and started to take the jacket off.

"No, it's OK," Iris said. "Keep it."

The girl smiled happily and gave Iris a big hug, then turned and ran into the center.

Iris remained kneeling for a few moments more, then got to her feet. Smith came up behind her and put his hand on her shoulder. "Professor?..." Iris asked.

Smith smiled warmly. "I think you just answered your question," he said.

Iris's eyes filled with happy tears, and she nodded in understanding. 

* * *

"So, where do you think Iris and the Professor went?" Sharon asked as X and she sat on a bench in the museum lobby.

"I wouldn't know," X replied. "I've never been to this city... However, the Professor seems to be a kind man, so he must just be trying to help Iris through her dilemma."

"...And we couldn't?" Sharon asked crossly.

"Well..." X started. "Some thing are best left to the more experienced."

"Huh?" Sharon asked.

"Professor Smith was the one who resurrected Iris," X said. "A creator and his creation have a special bond, much like a surrogate father and daughter... He'd probably help her the most. Besides, how exactly would you try to cheer up a depressed person?"

"Hmm... I guess you're right..." Sharon said as she looked down at the ground.

"...If it makes you feel any better, I don't know what I would do, either..." X replied.

"It doesn't, but thanks for tryin', Blue," Sharon replied with a chuckle.

"...'Blue?'" X asked.

Just then, the museum doors opened and Iris and Smith walked in. "We're back," Smith said.

"Hey, guys!" Sharon said as she hopped off the bench. "What's up?"

"Hi, Sharon," Iris said. "It's good to see you. Hey, is that X over there?"

Everyone looked over at X, who was still wearing the clothes that Sharon had brought him. "Err... I thought a casual outfit would make me less serious-looking," he said quickly.

"Well, it works," Smith said. "...Is that my shirt?"

Sharon chuckled and looked away quickly.

"Ah! Iris!" Darren said as he came into the room with Snake Man behind him. "How're you feeling?"

"Much better," Iris said as she looked at all of her friends. "I'm sorry I worried you guys... I was a little down, but I'm OK now... I'm ready for the next part of this adventure."

"You mean..." Snake Man started.

"Yeah," Sharon said. "We've gotta get Zero away from that hoodlum."

"If Ribosome takes Zero out of his capsule without the syrum, the Maverick Virus could reappear and wreak havoc again," X said. "We HAVE to retrieve him!"

"Yes," Iris said. "I'm not going to quit. I'll make sure we get Zero back!" She paused and looked at all of her friends. "Thanks, guys..." she said. "I couldn't have gotten this far without you..."

"Hey, we could all say the same about you, Iris," Sharon answered. "You taught me a lot about confrontin' what was bothering me..."

"You showed me that I've got to let go of troublesome things in the past," Darren added. "You've given me something worth protecting again!"

"I'm glad you gave me a chance to fight alongside you," Snake Man chimed in. "I've learned a lot about myself from being on this team."

"You showed me the strength of your resolve to see Zero again," X continued. "You've given me a new perspective on dedication."

"You've shown me just how much someone can turn her life around," Smith said. "You've set an example for me."

"Guys..." Iris said as she beamed.

"Say, Iris, is your hand OK now?" Darren asked.

Iris glanced down at her bandaged hand, then to Professor Smith.

"It should be OK now," Smith replied.

Iris slowly peeled off the bandages and exposed her new hand. She moved the fingers around a few times; it felt perfect. "It's just fine, Darren," she answered.

"That's good," Darren said with a smile. "Because I've got a little surprise for you!..."

Darren pulled a small, metal tube out of his pocket and handed it to Iris. "Surprise!" he said.

"Hmm?" Iris asked. "What-"

Iris's finger hit a small button the the side of the tube, and a long, purple beam thrust out and took the form of a blade. Iris looked at Darren in astonishment.

"I used the plans that Snake Man found to make you a new weapon!" Darren said with a smile. "I call it the I-Saber!"

"Darren..." Iris said as she looked at the gentle, purple ray, then smiled and blushed. "Thank you so much..." Just then, her expression changed from touched to determined. "Now, let's find Ribosome!"

"I'll run a search on the CONSTRICT mainframe to see if Ribosome's been reported transporting anything," Smith said. "That'll tell us where he's gone."

"Great!" Iris said as she held the I-Saber up high. "Hang on, Zero... We're coming to save you!"


	12. Confrontation

**CHAPTER 12**

**CONFRONTATION**

Gently twinkling stars slowly poked out of the fading clouds as the last of a gentle snow fell. A light wind blew, forming small snow dunes on the sidewalks. A winter's midnight in St. Paul was always a beautiful sight.

"OK, so, what're you doing again, Professor?" Iris asked.

Inside the museum, everyone huddled around Professor Smith's computer while he typed fervently. "I'm hacking into the CONSTRICT INC. computer system and getting ahold of their transportation records," Smith said. "Any recent shipments of a large, metal object like Zero's capsule would be saved for posterity..."

"So we can tell where Ribosome took Zero?" X asked. "Brilliant! You'd have made a great spotter for the Hunters, Professor."

"Heh heh heh..." Smith chuckled embarassedly. Suddenly, he became very serious. "Ah! Here we are... This shows that Ribosome personally oversaw the delivery of an oversized metal container to his research lab in Saudi Arabia. That's GOT to be it!"

"Of course," Snake Man said. "Even these days, Saudi Arabia is the perfect place to manufacture deadly weapons and stuff..."

"Professor, do you have a map?" Darren asked.

"Sure," Smith said as he hit a few more keys, and a map of Saudi Arabia appeared on the monitor. Darren stared hard at the lab's location.

"What's wrong, Darren?" Snake Man asked.

"I dunno..." Darren said as he continued staring. "I remember from history class that there's something buried around that spot, but I forgot what it was..."

"What do you suppose Ribosome will do with Zero?..." Iris asked.

"Well, he could strip him for parts, drain off his energy, brainwash him, turn him into a new bioweapon, remodel him into a vending machine..." Sharon grumbled as she counted on her fingers.

"Oh, no..." Iris gasped.

"Nice going, Sharon," Darren grumbled.

"Hey, she asked!" Sharon retorted.

"Whatever Ribosome's planning, we have to stop him," X said as he made a fist. "If Zero doesn't have the syrum installed when he's reactivated, the Maverick virus will spread like wildfire, and the war between humans and Reploids will begin all over again..."

"Well, let's quit yappin' and get over there!" Darren said. "What're we waiting for!"

"Yeah!" Iris said defiantly. "It's time..."

"Uh, Iris," Snake Man started. "I don't mean to be rude, but do you really want to fight in that?..."

Iris glanced down and noticed that she was still wearing the clothes that Smith had given her. "Oh. Uh..." Iris gulped. "I forgot my armor's not fixed yet..."

"Actually, Professor Olson finished repairing it," Smith said as he motioned towards a nearby workbench, upon which lay Iris's standard outfit. "You can re-equip it whenever you want."

"Wonderful!" Iris said as she grabbed the clothing. "I'll have to thank him for patching it up..." She strained for a moment, and suddenly the armor vanished and reappeared on her body.

"WOAH!" Sharon exclaimed. "How did you do that!"

"Automatic Armor," X said. "It's a built-in function that allows Reploids to swap what they're wearing with their battle armor." X strained and his familiar blue armor appeared over his garments. "See?"

"Wow," Darren said. "You learn something new every day..."

"Well, enough chitchat," Snake Man said. "Let's go and help Zero."

"Yes..." Iris said as she drew her I-Saber. "It's time to pay Ribosome another visit..."

* * *

The whir of power tools and the stench of burning metal filled a huge hangar as Ribosome watched his robot mechanics assemble his latest creation from an observation deck. Ribosome always enjoyed watching the assembly of his machines; the sounds, smells and activity all reminded him of the power he commanded. He smiled cruelly at the thought of the additional power he would obtain through using the new machine.

"Construction of R-Alpha prototype is 95 percent complete," a computer stated.

"Good," Ribosome replied. "All it needs now is its edge... Begin integrating-"

Just then, alarms began to scream and the lights flashed red. "Intruder alert!" the computer announced. "Two humans and four Reploids have breached the security perimeter!"

Ribosome chuckled darkly. "So, she's come... Dispatch the sentries."

* * *

The CONSTRICT INC. laboratory stood tall amidst the howling desert winds and sand dunes, reaching towards the cloudless blue sky above.

"So, here it is," Smith said as the six friends looked up at the structure. "Ribosome's Saudi Arabia research lab. I've heard all sorts of things about this place, and none of them were good."

"Aha!" Darren exclaimed suddenly. "Now I remember! This lab is built over the ruins of Skull Tower, one of Dr. Wily's strongholds!"

"Doctor who?" Sharon asked.

"No, Dr. Wily," Darren restated. "Haven't you been paying attention?"

"I thought something like that..." X replied as he looked around. "I sense a dark aura around this place..."

"Dark aura?..." Iris asked. "What do you mean, X?"

"Some things can't be scanned for or analyzed," X said. "You've got to feel them in your spirit... It's something that Zero taught me."

"Zero..." Iris murmured. "I guess I still have a lot to learn..."

"This thing's the only sign of life for miles around... It almost looks like a mirage, huh?" Sharon asked.

Suddenly, the lab's doors opened and five large robots marched out with plasma rifles trained on the group.

"I knew Ribosome would have guards!" Smith said. "This isn't going to be easy..."

"We'll take care of 'em!" Sharon yelled as Iris, X, Snake Man and she lept at the sentinels. The guards' shots came too late to be a threat, and all five were quickly destroyed.

"Well, that was a nice warm-up," Snake Man said as he lowered his arm cannon. "I'm sure it'll get tougher, though..."

X inspected the fallen sentries. "...These are just robots," he said. "They operate on basic commands only."

"Yeah, having a mindless drone security force is cheaper than sentient grunts," Smith muttered. "Ribosome was always a penny-pincher..."

"Good," Iris said. "That makes it a little easier... Now, let's get in there!"

The six travellers ran into the laboratory and immediately were attacked by several more drones. Thanks to Iris's sword skills, Sharon's karate techniques and X's gunmanship, though, they were dispatched with little trouble.

"Ha!" Sharon laughed as she pumped her fist. "This is TOO easy!"

"That's what worries me..." X said as he glanced around. "We could be walking into a trap..."

"I'm with X on this one," Smith agreed. "Ribosome's got something up his sleeve; we need to be ready..."

* * *

"Hmm," Ribosome said as he watched the Maverick Hunters through a security camera. "You're as observant as ever, professor... Iris will be easier to handle without all of you getting in the way... I'm afraid I'll have to separate you. Computer, change security programs every five minutes."

"Affirmative," the computer beeped. "Loading sentinel programs 'Fisticuff,' 'Watcher,' 'Impenitrable' and 'Giga.' Randomly selecting every five minutes..."

Ribosome turned away and chuckled again. "This ought to eliminate any problems..." he said.

* * *

Iris and her friends ran down one corridor after another, searching for anything leading to Ribosome and clobbering any guards that attacked. Soon, Iris came across a long hallway on the third floor. "Maybe he's this way," she suggested as she pointed down the hall.

"It's the only place we haven't tried yet," Darren acknowledged. "Let's give it a shot!"

"Just be careful," Snake Man warned. "No telling what's down there..."

Everybody who could armed themselves, and the party started down the hall.

"Man, is this a weird laboratory," Sharon said as she looked around. "There are offices and cubicles all over the place, there're fluorescent lights on the ceilings, and the floors are carpeted... It doesn't really scream 'evil,' if you catch my drift..."

"Labs aren't always beakers and machine parts," Smith said. "Besides, Ribosome's a businessman; he's not going to make his labs look like deathtraps."

"I'm used to fighting fruitcakes who do that sort of thing," X replied. "I think it's a nice change; Sigma never had shag on his floors..."

Iris and her friends walked through a door at the end of the hallway, and instantly they found themselves in a steel-walled hallway filled with flashing lights and whirring monitors.

"...Here we go," Darren muttered.

"Let's keep going," Sharon said as she broke into a sprint. "I'm sure Ribosome is just up ahead!"

"Yes, let's-OOOFFFF!" Iris started to follow Sharon, but stopped dead in her tracks, seeming to collide with something.

"Iris, what's wrong?" Darren asked as he ran up towards Iris.

"I hit something," Iris said as she put her arm forward. Sure enough, it touched something cold and solid. "...I think there's an invisible wall here..."

"Invisible...?" Darren asked as he walked up and kicked at the air near Iris. Sure enough, his foot banged into something. "There IS a wall here!"

"Huh!" Sharon asked as she turned and headed back towards her friends. "You guys are nuts. There's no- URRRFFF!" Sharon grunted as she smacked into the wall as well.

"Woah!" Smith exclaimed. "We've been separated from Sharon! This isn't good..."

"But why?" Snake Man asked. "I thought Ribosome wanted Iris, not Sharon."

X thought for a moment, then frowned. "He thinks we'll each be weaker alone, so he's trying to break us up!"

"OK, this ain't funny..." Sharon growled as she hammered on the wall. Suddenly, three wiry, fast robots appeared in front of everyone and assumed attack stances.

"Martial arts troopers!" Sharon asked as she struck her own battle pose. "Now this is my kind of fight! Bring it, boys!"

The three guards lunged at Sharon with various punches, but Sharon leaped away and knocked one into the wall with a vicious kick, then punched the remaining two simultaneously. The three attacked again, but Sharon lept straight up and hit all three with a whirling kick. When she came down, though, they were ready; one guard slid on the ground and tripped Sharon, and another kicked her straight to the third, who put his arms around her in a tight bear hug. Sharon's eyes glazed over with primal anger.

"Uh-oh," Darren gulped.

"What's wrong?" X asked.

"Nobody should EVER touch Sharon," Darren said.

Suddenly, Sharon let out a loud shriek. What happened next came in a whirlwind.

"...Oh, geez," Snake Man gulped.

"Ugggh!" Iris gagged as she stuck her tongue out in disgust.

"Oooh!" Smith winced, continuously cringing and flinching.

"You weren't kidding," X said, his eyes wide in horror.

"That's Sharon for you," Darren said. A severed Reploid head smacked against the wall right in front of him and he let out a high shriek.

Sharon emerged from a dissipating smoke cloud with one of the guards' arms slung over her shoulder. "Well, that's that," she stated.

"...Uh... Way to go, Sharon!... I think," Iris cheered halfheartedly.

"Yeah!" Sharon laughed. "I rock!"

"Hey," Darren said as he swung his hand around in front of him. "The wall is gone! I guess we can move ahead."

"Well, let's do just that!" Smith announced. "Come on, gentlemen! Time's a-wastin'!"

The party ran a while more down the long hallway, but suddenly came upon a sealed, metal door. "What's this?" Iris asked as she pushed on the door.

"Whatever it is, it's shut tight as a drum," Smith said as he eyed the doorway. "It's totally set in the wall."

"How do we get through it?..." Snake Man asked as he glanced around and scratched his chin.

"Look, over there," X said as he pointed to a small keypad on a nearby wall. "I'll bet this door is password-protected."

"That sounds like Ribosome, all right," Smith said with a sigh. "He never wanted anybody in on his trade secrets..."

"Aww, geez," Sharon grumbled as she glared at the keypad. "I just got done fighting! I don't have time for this!"

"We'll have to decipher the password..." Darren said as he looked over the pad; it had six slots on it, and each slot but the last two held a shape. "...Is anybody good with patterns?" he asked after a moment.

"OK, that does it!" Sharon snarled as she drew back into a fighting stance. "I'm gonna give this thing a password!"

"No, wait, Sharon!" Iris started.

"Entering the wrong password could-" X started.

Sharon kicked the keypad as hard as she could, reducing it to scrap in the process. Immediately, sirens blared and lights flashed red.

"...Set off a trap," X finished.

"EMERGENCY!" a loud electronic voice declared. "INTRUDERS! ACTIVATE SECURITY PROTOCOLS!"

"Way to go, Sharon!" Darren snapped.

"Uh... Oops?" Sharon said with an embarrassed chuckle. "...Hey, what's that noise?... AHHH!"

Suddenly, the floor beneath the party disappeared, and everyone but Sharon plummeted into the darkness.

Sharon clung to the wall for dear life. "OK, Shar, not your best moment," she grunted. "NOW what do I do?..."

Sharon glanced over at the smashed keypad and thought for a moment. "...Well, I hope I didn't bust it TOO badly..." she said as she reached for it.

* * *

Professor Smith whooped and screamed as he slid down a tube and crashed face down on a cold floor. "Vuoooo..." he groaned as he picked himself up. "What... Where am I?..."

Smith looked up and down the unending hallway; none of his friends were to be seen. He called out their names, but there were no answers. "We've been separated..." he muttered as he glanced around. "I hope everybody else is all right..."

Just then, the entire hallway shook. "Activating Security Program 'Impenitrable,'" a mechanical voice boomed through the tunnel.

"Impenitrable? What the..." Smith grunted as something began whirring behind him. He turned around and to see a gigantic, heavily-armed sentry drop from the ceiling. The robot eyed Smith and immediately pointed all of its artillery at him.

"...On second thought," Smith gulped as he nervously started backing away. "Maybe I should worry more about myself!..."

* * *

"Hmmm..." Darren growled as he glared at the predicament in front of him.

"Yes, it's quite a tricky one, eh?" Snake Man asked.

Darren and Snake Man stood in a corridor, staring down an imposing obstacle; a half-open door could be seen on the far end of the hall, but two mechanical, floating eyeballs hovered up and down the tunnel, totally blocking their progress.

"So, this is Security Program 'Watcher...'" Snake Man mumbled.

"I don't suppose we could just run past them?..." Darren asked.

"Let's see..." Snake Man said as he quietly deployed one of his Search Snake ground missiles. As soon as the little snake started to skitter across the floor, the eyes looked right at it and vaporized it with white-hot laser beams.

"Crap," Snake Man cursed. "Those eyes locked on faster than I could blink!"

"Too bad we don't have a giant blindfold..." Darren joked halfheartedly. "We'd be able to sneak past them easily..."

"Darren, this isn't time for-" Snake Man started. Just then, his hand struck the wall, and a loud CLUNK echoed through the entire hallway.

"Ahhh!" Darren gasped as he grabbed his hat and waited for the eyes to fry them. After a few moments, though, he opened his eyes and looked.

"That's strange..." Snake Man observed. The eyeballs hadn't seemed to notice the obvious loud noise; they merely continued to patrol the doorway.

"...They... They didn't hear that?..." Darren asked. "Woah. Well, eyes weren't made for listening, were they?..."

"Hmmm..." Snake Man said as he scratched his chin in thought.

* * *

"I wonder where everyone else ended up," Iris said as X and she wandered down a dark hall.

"I'm sure they're all fine," X replied. "I don't know them that well, but something tells me we'll see them again."

"That's good..." Iris said. After a brief pause, she coughed akwardly. "Um, X, can I ask you a question?" she asked.

"What's up?" X asked as he turned towards Iris.

"Well..." Iris started as she scratched her head uncomfortably. "What... What was Zero like... you know, after the Repliforce Affair?..."

X nodded, seeming to understand what Iris meant. "...Cold as ice," he replied. "He didn't open up to anyone but his few remaining friends, and he fought against the Mavericks with less than all his heart... He never really was the same."

"Oh..." Iris said quietly. "I guess I meant more to him than I thought..."

"More than you thought?" X asked.

"Well, I guess at first, I thought that I must not have been very important to Zero if he killed my brother, knowing very well how much I loved him..." Iris said. "But..."

"Trust me, Iris," X said as he faced Iris completely. "You meant something to Zero. He once told me that there were only two people in the world that meant anything to him: myself and you. Trust me, when he says something like that, he's serious." X paused and looked away.

"X..." Iris started.

Just then, a gigantic robot guard rose up from the floor and blocked the friends' way. It had gigantic, sharp claws, a strong, thick body and an angry glow in its cycloptic eye. "Activating Security Program, 'Giga...'" a mechanical voice echoed.

"How are we going to stop THAT thing?..." Iris gulped as she backed away.

"The way that Zero and I always beat our foes," X said as he smiled bravely at Iris. "Teamwork! I'll distract him while you attack his power source!"

"OK," Iris said as she glanced up at the homicidal machine. "Um... Where's his power source?"

"Heck if I know," X said as he pelted the guard with a storm of plasma shots. "Hurry and attack!"

The guard whirled towards Iris and swung its shining claw, but Iris rolled beneath it as it tore huge gashes in the wall.

Iris lunged at the monster's torso with her I-Saber and swung with all her might; her beam slashed right through the metal armor, but didn't scratch it at all. "Wh-what!" Iris asked as she landed and stared in disbelief. "But... But it went in!..."

The guard was unfazed by Iris's attack, and it immediately sent both claws flying right at her.

"Iris! Watch out!" X yelled as he charged his arm cannon and fired a shot right into the sentry's claws. The claws tilted off course and smashed into the other wall.

Iris ran back to X while the sentry pulled its claws from the wrecked wall. "The power source... must be somewhere else," she panted. "My sword just passed right through..."

"I saw," X answered. "This thing's got cunning..."

With a mighty pull, the guard yanked its claws loose and lumbered towards the Hunters again. Iris looked up at it nervously. "There has to be some way to find its power source..." she mumbled.

"He's coming..." X growled as he stepped backwards and the sentry continued advancing.

Suddenly, Iris had an idea. "X, fire at all parts of his body!" she said quickly. "See if it reacts anywhere!"

X complied with Iris's idea, and both of them opened fire on all parts of the guard. Most of their shots were ignored and bounced right off, but when X fired right at its head, the sentry's arms immediately flew up and blocked it.

"Look at that..." X said with a wry smile. "Great idea, Iris."

"Hmm... But it's blocking our projectiles, and the head's too high up for me to slash..." Iris grumbled as she thought some more. "Now what?..."

"Now I've got an idea," X said as he turned to Iris. "It's not that conventional, but it could work." He got down on one knee and motioned for Iris.

"What're you doing?" Iris asked.

"Climb on my back!" X ordered. "Hurry!"

"Well, OK," Iris said as she ran over and mounted X's back. "...No funny business, now!"

"Let's go!" X shouted as he charged straight at the sentry, Iris holding on with all her might. The sentry lifted another claw to strike them down.

"NOW!" X yelled as he leaped into the air towards the guard's head as the guard's claw came whizzing in, and Iris leaped off X's back just as the claw slashed into him. Iris pulled out her I-Saber and sent its blade right through the sentry's head. Sparks flew for a few moments, then the machine grew dark and toppled over with a loud smash.

Iris landed, sheathed her I-Saber and ran to check on X; he was staggering into a sitting position, a huge claw mark torn right across his armor. "X! Are you OK!" Iris asked.

"Just got the wind knocked out of me," X wheezed. "Good thing that claw only hit my armor... I'll patch it up later."

"That's good to hear..." Iris said as she helped X to his feet. "I wouldn't want to lose any more friends..."

"Not to worry," X said as he looked ahead. "Come on, I think I see a door up ahead. We should meet up with the others..."

"Yeah," Iris nodded as she started forward.

"Hey, Iris," X said suddenly.

Iris turned and gave X a questioning look.

"You did great back there," X complimented. "You're really strong!"

Iris smiled again. "Thanks," she answered. "Um..."

"If you want to talk some more, we can do that later," X said as he looked towards the iron door. "We have to stop Ribosome now!"

"I'm right behind you, X," Iris replied as she followed the blue Reploid to the door.

* * *

Iris and X shoved the door open and walked into a high-ceilinged room the length of a locker room. The room glowed a quiet blue, casting shadows on the Reploids. Several other doors decorated the walls, each emitting the same blue light.

"Hmm..." Iris said as she looked around. "This is a puzzle..."

"I wonder if we have to try all these doors?..." X asked. "That'd be pretty tedious..."

Just then, a door to the left slowly began to open.

"Look out!" Iris shouted as she yanked out her I-Saber and leaped at the person emerging from door. She grabbed the figure by its clothing and pulled vigorously. "Come out here!" she huffed.

"(COUGH) Agh! OK! You got me! I give!" a familiar voice cried out.

Surprised, Iris removed her hand and looked at her 'assailant.' "...Huh!" she asked. She was staring right at an equally startled Professor Smith. He looked sweaty and nervous, and he clutched a sharp metal pole.

"Nice to see you, too, Iris," Smith grumbled as he fumbled with his glasses. "You almost gave me a heart attack."

"Sorry," Iris apologized. "I thought you were another robot guard... Hey, where did you go?"

"I ended up face-to-face with a gigantic sentry," Smith explained as he motioned at the pole. "Good thing I knew that particular model would just fall apart if I jabbed it in the right place. Now I'm glad I studied robot weak points!..."

"Hey! Anybody in here!" Sharon called as she stepped out of another door. "...Hey! Iris! Prof! You're OK!"

"Sharon! Thank goodness," Iris said.

"I guess you figured out that passcode after all," X said with a chuckle.

"Yeah, I did..." Sharon said with an embarrassed look. "Sorry 'bout that, guys..."

"That's almost everyone," Smith remarked. "But where are Snake Man and Darren?"

"Hello!" Darren exclaimed as Snake Man and he emerged from a third door.

"Darren!" Iris cried happily as she greeted her friend. "And Snake Man, too! Wonderful!"

"Where did the trap send you two?" X asked.

"We ended up in a hallway full of huge motion-sensor guards," Darren explained. "It looked pretty hopeless, until Snake Man realized they were deaf!"

"By cloaking ourselves with the Chameleon Sting, we were able to sneak up on the guards and destroy them," Snake Man finished as he patted his arm cannon. "I guess I can see where this thing's gonna come in handy!" Just then, he vanished completely. "...Or not," he sighed.

"So, everyone's back together," X remarked. "That's good. We can press on now."

"Oh, yeah!" Sharon laughed as she threw a few punches. "Let's take that jerk out!"

"It looks like there's only one door that nobody's been through," Iris said as she pointed to the portal straight ahead. "I bet Ribosome's right behind it..."

"Very good," a familiar, dark voice emanated from the door.

"Here he comes..." Darren growled as everyone braced themselves.

The iron door slid open, a nd out stepped Ribosome, looking as business-like and gentlemanly as ever. "Excellent work," he said to the six friends. "I've watched each of you make your way through my defenses. You're all cunning, defiant and strong, much like myself. CONSTRICT, INC. would benefit greatly from your skills. Surrender Iris now and I'll make the rest of you high-level employees."

"If you know us so well, you already know the answer to that," Snake Man said. "Bribery won't get you anywhere!"

"You know what we're here for," Iris said. "Give Zero back, and we'll leave."

Ribosome chuckled again. "You foolishly refuse the power and wealth I offer you to satisfy your arcane ideals... How naive you are. You wouldn't last long in the business world."

"That's it!" Sharon huffed as she balled her fists. "Hand over the red guy, or this's gonna get ugly! Capische!"

"I'm afraid I can't do that," Ribosome answered. "You see, Zero has become a very important part of CONSTRICT, INC."

"What... What do you mean?" Iris asked.

The door behind Ribosome swiveled open, and he stepped through it. "If you want to know, you could simply follow me," he said. "However, I've grown tired of your antics..."

Ribosome snapped his fingers and the Reploid mech from the volcano smashed into the room, its drill arms whirring with malice. "This is my ride armor prototype, R-Beta. I'm sure it will be enough to take care of you," Ribosome stated bluntly. With that, he turned and walked back into the darkness.

"Wait! Ribosome!..." Iris called as she ran towards the door. Instantly, R-Beta flew in front of her and blocked the path. Iris set her jaw as she stared down the machine.

"Wait, Iris!" Darren called. Iris turned around to see her five friends standing behind her, each clutching whatever weapons they had.

"...Darren?" Iris asked.

"You save Zero!" Darren said with a smile. "We'll take care of this and catch up!"

Iris looked at her friends thoughtfully for a moment, then nodded. "OK," she said. "Be careful!"

"Let's get you past this walking dental accessory," Sharon said as X and she picked Iris up and tossed her over R-Beta's head. She ran to the door, but paused and looked back at her friends.

"Guys..." Iris said. "Thank you..."

"No time for mush now!" Smith called. "Stop Ribosome!"

With a determined glower, Iris turned and ran through the door.

"OK, then, ugly," Sharon laughed as R-Beta readied its weapons. "Let's dance!..."

* * *

Iris plunged into complete darkness as she stepped through the iron portal. The air was warm, and the stench of burning steel almost overwhelmed her. Her footsteps echoed loudly as she walked, declaring that the room she was now in was very large.

"Ribosome... Where are you?" Iris called into the void.

"So, you've come all by yourself," Ribosome's voice echoed back. "You're very brave."

"Come on, Ribosome!" Iris said. "This has gone on long enough! Why are you after me?"

"I told you," Ribosome said as a spotlight activated and shone down upon the crooked businessman. "You have something I want."

"But there's been so much pain... So much violence!" Iris replied. "Whatever it is that you're after, it couldn't be worth all this!"

"No, you're correct..." Ribosome said. "It's worth much, much more. Once again, I offer you a chance at greatness. Forsake your foolish ideals and work under me, and you will be able to have everything your heart desires."

Iris shook her head. "No..." she said. "It doesn't work like that... Money can't get you everything... You can't buy friendship, happiness, or love... Those are the things that I've wanted for the longest time... Ever since I came back, I've experienced friendship as I never had before, and I've never been happier... But there's still a hole I need to fill, and there's only one person who can do that..." Iris looked up at Ribosome defiantly. "I don't want to be rich, Ribosome. I just want to live a normal, happy life... The only thing left I need to accomplish that is Zero... So, please, give him back!"

Ribosome looked at Iris boredly for a moment, then dryly applauded. "Very touching," he said. "However, you're very mistaken; money can and will get a person anything. Everything is for sale; you just have to match the price. That's how the real world works."

"That's just sad," Iris said. "I hope someday you understand..."

"Utter rubbish," Ribosome retorted as a machine whirred and he moved upwards and away from Iris. "Whatever the case, you don't seem to want to cooperate, so I'm ending negotiations."

"Ending negotiations?..." Iris asked.

"You see, my dear, my offer was simply a courtesy," Ribosome said as the spotlight went out. "I don't need you to be... alive... to obtain what I need..."

The entire room slowly brightened, and Iris looked up and recoiled in shock and terror.

Before Iris stood a dangerous-looking bipedal mech. The monsterous machine was standing one and a half stories tall, painted dark violet and armed to the teeth with huge energy weapons. At the top of the mech sat Ribosome, leering down at her with triumph. "My R-Alpha will put you back to sleep," he said. "Just relax..."

"No," Iris declared defiantly as she drew her I-Saber in one hand and activated her Buster in the other. "I'm staying this time! I've got too much to live for!"

The mammoth mech lurched forward and swung its mighty fist, but Iris rolled away. She fired several rounds, but they simply bounced off the R-Alpha's glistening armor. Ribosome swung his other set of knuckles and smashed the ground beneath Iris to knock her over. When Iris hit the ground, the mech's chest compartment opened up and fired a salvo of missiles. Iris got to her feet and shot down all of the projectiles but one, which caught her side and sent her crashing into some crates on the right.

"N'ghhh..." Iris groaned as she struggled to free herself from the crates, but to no avail. Ribosome's mech lumbered over, reached down and grabbed Iris in its iron grip.

"You only delay the inevitable," Ribosome's voice boomed across the room. "Why won't you go quietly?"

Iris strained and clasped her I-Saber tightly. In a flash, its purple beam burst through the R-Alpha's wrist. As Ribosome gasped in surprise, Iris swung the saber in a full circle and took the entire hand off. It crashed to the ground and loosened its fingers, and Iris leaped out with her I-Buster ready.

"I'm just not that kind of person!" Iris replied as she fired several charged volleys intro the R-Alpha's sparking wrist. With a ferocious yell, Ribosome staggered backwards, the arm sparking and smoking everywhere. With a grunt of frustration, the mech detached the sparking arm, which crashed to the ground with a loud clatter.

"Very well," Ribosome growled. "One arm is more than enough to put you down."

"Really?" Iris asked as she aimed her I-Buster again, this time at the R-Alpha's torso. "Every mech has its power core in the center, and with only one arm, you can't protect your chassis as well!"

"Is that so?..." Ribosome asked. "Did you honestly think I only had the mech's weapons to defend its core? Poor girl. The truth is..." The R-Alpha's chest slid open to reveal a sickeningly familiar structure.

Iris gasped in horror. "No!..." she cried.

"Indeed," Ribosome said as the capsule containing Zero glowed with an eerie, green light. "So, go ahead and attack... However, you might hurt my special guest. What will you do now?"

Iris bit her lip and lowered her arm cannon. Before she could react, the R-Alpha swung its leg and kicked her straight into the wall.

"...Smart girl," Ribosome chuckled darkly. "Don't worry... You'll join your friends soon enough."

The R-Alpha 's remaining hand scooped Iris up and began to squeeze. "A-aaaagh!..." Iris moaned as the strong, metal fingers grew tighter and tighter around her. Her air began to cut off, and the world grew darker and darker...

"Don't worry," Ribosome said as he flashed a greedy smile. "Your powers will go to a worthy cause: mine."

Suddenly, the second arm also started sparking, and billows of smoke poured out of its openings. "What!" Ribosome asked angrily. "What's happening!"

With a loud SNAP, the second hand tumbled to the ground and released Iris. "Phew..." Iris gasped as she crawled out of the grip. "That was close..."

"What... How..." Ribosome choked. Just then, three missile-powered drills tore out of the back of the arm. Ribosome looked down to see that Iris's armor color had changed. "Agh!..." he gasped.

"Tornado Fangs... Whew," Iris panted. "I'm glad I had those..." Without another word, she raised her I-Buster and shot a charged round into the remaining arm, and it snapped off without a hitch.

"Agh!..." Ribosome yelled as the R-Alpha 's empty arm sockets vented gallons of steam. "Impossible!..."

"Ribosome!" Iris cried up at the mech. "This sick game ends now!"

Ribosome responded by firing another missile barrage at Iris, but another of her charged bursts destroyed the projectiles. Iris leaped up to Ribosome's chamber and drew her I-Saber. With one swift movement, she sent the blade straight down into the R-Alpha 's upper torso, high enough to miss Zero's capsule.

The R-Alpha teetered for a moment, then toppled backwards as Iris leaped off. With a loud CRASH, the mech hit the ground and lay still. Iris looked at it for a moment, then let out a sigh of relief. "Whew... It's over..." she said.

"Hey! Iris!" a voice behind Iris called.

Iris turned around and saw all of her friends run into the room. "We're here to help!" Sharon declared. "Where's Ribosome!"

"The R-Beta won't be bothering anyone for a while," Darren said. Just then, he noticed the toppled R-Alpha. "Woah..." he said.

"Well," Snake Man said with a chuckle. "It looks like Iris didn't need our help after all."

"Nice work, Iris," X complimented. "I knew you could do it."

"So did I," Professor Smith said with a smile. "Now, let's get Zero out of there and go home!"

"Right," Iris said. "Did you bring the syrum?"

Smith fumbled through his labcoat pocket and pulled out the small cube. "Here it is," he stated.

"Great!" Iris exclaimed with a smile. "I know where in the mech Zero's being held. Let me-"

X grabbed Iris's shoulder as she turned for the mech. "Wait," he said. "Something's wrong."

"What?..." Iris asked as she turned back to X. "What's wrong?"

"It's never this easy," X replied. "Ribosome could be-"

"Iris..." Darren gulped as he backed up. "Look!..."

Everyone turned around and gasped in surprise. The R-Alpha seemed to be turning inside out; its bits and pieces were being pulled toward the center, and new parts emerged and took new positions. After about thirty seconds of the transformation, the R-Alpha was a huge, purple, four-legged wolf-like creature with a sharp tail and a green crystal on its forehead.

"Holy crap..." Sharon gulped.

"I didn't think you could stop my R-Alpha, Iris," Ribosome's voice echoed again. "However, my mech has two attack modes. You may have stopped the R-Alpha HUMAN mode... but all of you will fall to the R-Alpha WOLVERINE!"

With that, the R-Alpha opened its mouth and unleashed a bloodcurling roar.

"AAAGH!" Snake Man shouted.

"How are we supposed to fight THAT!" Darren choked.

"The best we can!" X growled as he discharged his X-Buster right at the monster's face.

The R-Alpha opened its maw and engulfed the burst, then fired it right into the ground at X's feet, knocking him flat on his back.

"X, be careful!" Smith warned as he glanced at X. "Your chest armor's already damaged... Another hit could shatter it completely!"

"You can't swallow something that isn't going towards your mouth!" Snake Man said as he fired a barrage of Search Snakes at R-Alpha's legs.

The wolverine raised its claws and slashed the projectiles to ribbons.

"...Errmmm... I forgot about those..." Snake Man gulped embarassedly.

With another roar, the R-Alpha charged towards the party, stood on its hind legs and buried its claws in the wall right above them.

"Huh?" Darren asked. "What's it doing?..."

With another roar, laser cannons emerged from the R-Alpha's arms and salvos of energy beams rained down on the friends.

"Agghhhh!" Smith yelled as Darren and he ran for safety; humans would be burned to crisps if one of the lasers hit them.

"Leave them alone!" Iris yelled as she shot at R-Alpha's underbelly. The plasma shots hit the stomach and the wolverine shrieked and recoiled in pain.

"Hey, it doesn't like gettin' hit there!" Sharon chuckled. "OK, you big rug, time to roll over!"

Sharon leaped up and swung a fiery fist right into the R-Alpha's eye, and the wolverine machine roared furiously. Sharon leaped again and lashed the other eye with her Sonic Tentacle weapon, and the R-Alpha shrieked again. Finally, Sharon sent a spinning uppercut kick right into the monster's jaw, and the beast staggered back a few steps.

"Ha!" Sharon laughed as she landed and swung her fist defiantly. "How do you like THAT! C'mon, fuzzball!"

"Sharon, be careful!" Iris called. "He's got Zero in there!"

"Yes, indeed," Ribosome's voice emanated from the R-Alpha. "I have Zero, and that will make all the difference..."

The crystal on the R-Alpha's forehead faded away to reveal Zero's capsule, which flashed with eerie green light. "Zero..." X gasped as he gazed in horror at the sight. "Ribosome, stop! You don't know what you're doing!"

"Heh!" Sharon growled as she ran towards the R-Alpha again. "That doesn't scare me, Ribo! Gimme your best shot!"

"With pleasure," Ribosome chuckled darkly. Zero's capsule flashed rapidly, and the R-Alpha raised its tail over its head, where the tip flashed with green light at the same speed as the capsule. "Let me show you just what Zero has become!..."

"Oh, no..." Iris gasped. "Sharon! Get away from there, NOW!"

"Fire the Pulse Cannon!" Ribosome shouted. Instantly, the tail's tip unleashed a huge, green energy ray that shaped into speedy wave rings. The waves engulfed Sharon and pulsated violently.

"SHARON!" Darren yelled.

When the beam vanished, Sharon was embedded in the far wall, her body scarred with burns and bruised. "Ohhhhh..." she wheezed as she crashed to the floor. "That... was his best shot, all right..."

"What did you do to her!" Snake Man asked the giant mech.

"My Pulse Cannon blends a barrage of laser rings into one powerful death ray," Ribosome's voice boomed. "We've been developing it at CONSTRICT, INC for years, but could never find a power source able to sustain it... until now."

"Agh!" Darren cried. "Zero! He's using Zero to fuel that weapon!"

"Your friend has a powerful energy inside of him," Ribosome chuckled. "That was just what the weapon needed to function. Care for another demonstration?" The R-Alpha's tail swiveled over to Snake Man.

"Snake Man! Run!" Iris yelled.

Snake Man turned to get away, but once again, the beam swallowed its victim and left him wedged in the wall. "Ohhhh..." he groaned as he fell on his back. "So strong..."

"You're sick!" X yelled. "That energy shouldn't be tampered with!"

"Good lord..." Smith growled. "We've GOT to get Zero away from him!..."

"With such a powerful weapon at my disposal, I don't see why I should prolong this scuffle any longer," Ribosome said as the tail pointed straight at Iris. "So, farewell, Iris!"

"Whaaagh!" Iris cried as she turned to move, but stumbled and fell.

"Iris!" Darren yelled.

"No!..." X gasped.

"Firing Pulse Cannon!" Ribosome boomed. The green beam burst forth from the tail. Iris covered her face and awaited the blast...

Iris heard rapid footsteps, then the cannon firing, then someone else's scream. Iris looked up to see X smashed into the wall right behind her. His entire torso armor was gone, exposing his normal flesh. "X! Oh, no!..." Iris cried as she ran to her friend. "X! Are you OK!" she asked.

"Don't worry about me..." X coughed. "Get Zero... away from him!..."

"What fools," Ribosome said as his tail trained on Iris again. "I've no sympathy at all."

Iris yelled loudly and ran as the Pulse Cannon blew a huge crater where she had just been. She turned and quickly dived behind some warehouse crates to catch her breath.

"Oh, thank God you're OK!" Darren panted as he smiled at Iris. Iris looked up; Darren and Professor Smith were sitting behind the crates with her.

Iris looked at her friends; Everybody was down for the count except the three of them. "What can I do?..." she asked. "This seems so hopeless..."

Darren and Smith looked at each other and nodded. "Iris," Darren said. "We'll get up there and remove the capsule from the mech."

"What!" Iris exclaimed. "No! Please, don't! You'll get hurt, or...!"

"Not if you're backing us up," Smith said. "Iris, we can't fight, and we're pretty danger-prone, but I know the most about fixing Reploids, and Darren's a great engineer. This is how we can help you."

Iris bit her lip; she remembered how badly Darren had been hurt when he had fought Fefnir for her, and the last thing she wanted was to put him at risk again. She had the same concern for the kindly professor who had brought her back to life.

"Iris, please," Darren said as he clasped her hand tightly. "We want to help..."

Iris looked away for a moment, then gave Darren and Smith a sad look. "Promise me you'll be careful..." she said quietly.

"Of course," Smith chuckled. "We don't wanna get vaporized any more than you want us to."

"...All right..." Iris said. "I'll keep him busy."

"Attagirl, Iris," Smith smiled. "We knew we could count on you!"

Iris leaped out from behind the crates and drew her I-Saber. "Ribosome! This ends now!" she shouted as she ran at the R-Alpha.

"You still wish to fight?" Ribosome's voice asked. "I don't understand why, but..." The R-Alpha's tail flashed and the Pulse Cannon fired again.

"Haaaaaaaa!" Iris screamed as she shut her eyes and leaped forward. In what seemed to be a miracle, she flew beneath the Pulse Cannon's blast and slashed the R-Alpha's leg. The bestial machine shrieked angrily and glared down at her.

"If Darren and Professor Smith are going to be safe, you can't be moving!" Iris said as she held out her I-Saber. "...And I have just the plan for that!" The I-Saber's beam changed from purple to blue, and ice formed all over it. "HYOURETSUZAN!" Iris yelled as she thrust the sword into the ground, and instantly a tremendous patch of ice spread beneath the R-Alpha.

"What's this?" Ribosome asked as the R-Alpha's tail locked onto her again. "Are you trying to make me rust?..."

"No..." Iris said as her armor turned pink and yellow. "I'm just a little warm!"

"Whatever you're planning won't work," Ribosome growled as the R-Alpha raised its claw and lunged.

"Really?" Iris asked as she launched a blue, rolling sphere. The R-Alpha's raised foot slid over it and the entire mech toppled onto its back. "Armored Armadillo's Rolling Sheild," Iris said as she approached the mech. "I knew it would help... Darren! Professor!"

Darren and Professor Smith immediately hopped out from behind the crates and mounted the downed R-Alpha's forehead. "Thanks, Iris!" Darren called.

"Just keep him down!" Smith yelled.

"Argh!" Ribosome growled as the R-Alpha struggled to regain its footing, but kept slipping on the ice that the Hyouretsuzan attack had spread. "Stop! Don't you dare touch that!"

"You're not that scary now, bud," Darren said as he produced a wrench and started unhinging the bolts that held Zero's capsule in place.

"N'ghhh!..." Smith grunted as he pulled at the capsule and it moved a little. "It's loosening, but it's still wired right into the mech!..." he stated. "We'll have to cut the cords!"

"Tamper with my weapons and you'll regret it!" Ribosome yelled. "Do you think the Pulse Cannon is the only weapon I have installed!" The R-Alpha's tail glowed a bright red.

"What!" Iris gulped. "No! Darren, Professor, get away from there!"

The R-Alpha's tail fired a bright red laser onto the ice, which immediately vanished in a burst of steam.

"A heat ray!" Smith gulped. "We're in trouble!"

"I'm almost done!..." Darren shouted as he wrenched off the final bolt. "...Got it!"

The R-Alpha quickly righted itself, flinging Darren, Smith and the capsule away in its rages. Since the capsule was still wired into the mech, though, it bungeed back to the forehead and then drooped across the wolverine's face, and since Darren and the Professor were holding onto the capsule, they also flew back.

"You two have caused enough trouble!" Ribosome's voice boomed, and the R-Alpha writhed and pitched around, violently swinging the capsule this way and that. The two humans held on for dear life, but the longer they held, the worse the R-Alpha thrashed.

"No!" Iris yelled as she drew her I-Saber and leaped up towards the thrashing machine. "Leave them alone!"

"And don't think I haven't forgotten about you!..." Ribosome growled as the R-Alpha's tail locked onto Iris and flashed green again.

"IRIS, LOOK OUT!" Darren yelled as the springing capsule soared right towards Iris. Iris quickly lunged and sliced the wires holding the capsule. Zero's capsule, Darren and Smith crashed to the ground and Iris leaped away from the fuming wolverine.

"NO!" Ribosome yelled as the green aura in the R-Alpha's tail faded away. "This tears it... You'll never leave this place alive!" he roared. The R-Alpha opened its mouth and riddled the ground with plasma shots.

Iris dodged the R-Alpha's bullets and rolled to the side, but Ribosome was ready; the wolverine brought its foot down and pinned her to the ground. Iris cried in agony as the razor-sharp claws slowly pushed into her skin.

"Oh, no!" Darren gasped. "Iris is in major trouble! Professor, you've gotta hurry!"

"All right," Smith said as he took a deep breath and pried the capsule open.

Lying in the capsule was a masculine Reploid with long hair tied into a ponytail and flashing, red armor. Darren let out a small gasp as Smith eyed the Reploid intently.

"It's him..." Smith said as his glasses fogged up with sweat. "It's the legendary Maverick Hunter, Zero..."

Darren glanced back at Iris, whose struggles were weakening by the second as the R-Alpha's claw pushed into her. "Hurry and reactivate him, Professor!" he pleaded. "Iris is almost..."

"I need to give him the syrum," Smith said as he pulled the small cube from his labcoat. "I can't implant it, so I'll just install it in his helmet. That'll do for now." He pried the blue diamond from Zero's helmet, quickly hooked the cube up and replaced the jewel. "Now, to activate him..."

"It doesn't matter," Ribosome's voice boomed. "In just a few more moments, Iris will once again be only a memory..."

"Agh..." Iris choked. "Zero... Darren... Pro...fessor... I-I'm..."

"Iris! No!..." Darren cried. "No... I can't do anything to help her!... DAMMIT!" He angrily brought his fist down on Zero's chest.

Suddenly, the red Reploid's eyes snapped open and he abruptly sat up. "Woah!" Smith exclaimed. "Whatever you did, Darren, it worked!"

"Huh?..." Darren asked.

Zero stared straight ahead with glazed eyes, like a person just waking up from a long sleep.

"Zero," Smith said quickly. "Please, stop that machine!..."

Iris's vision began to darken and the pain in her back dulled, as if it was stopping altogether. Her imminent doom at hand, Iris closed her eyes and recalled all the wonderful times she'd had in this new world. She thought of her friends, who, though still fairly new, had been the best ones she'd ever had. She exhaled one final time and waited for the world to disappear.

The next thing Iris heard was a loud metal-on-metal smash and the R-Alpha roar in rage and agony. Suddenly, Iris could move again. "...Huh?..." Iris asked as she looked up, her sight and strength quickly returning to her.

The claw that had been pressing into Iris was now smashed against a far wall, and the R-Alpha was teetering on three legs in front of her. Right next to her stood a familiar red Reploid, his hands dripping with oil from the mech's severed limb.

"Ze... Zero?..." Iris asked quietly.

"You... YOU!..." Ribosome snarled as the R-Alpha growled at the newcomer. "How DARE you interfere with me!"

Without a word, Zero flew at the R-Alpha and kicked off another of its limbs, and then ripped off another while the beast mech howled in agony and Ribosome screamed vulgarities from his microphone. Finally, Zero grabbed what was left of the mech and pulled. Very slowly, he lifted the beast over his head and then ferociously slammed it onto the ground. Whisps of smoke curled from all around the wolverine; the R-Alpha was finished.

"...Woah," Darren stated as he gaped in awe at the sudden chaos.

"Iris, now!" Smith yelled.

"The power core!" Darren called. "Destroy the power core!"

Iris drew her I-Saber and leaped onto the R-Alpha's stomach. With one quick motion, she sent the sword home. The R-Alpha sparked a few times, then grew dark and silent.

Iris stumbled onto the ground, panting and sweating like she never had before. "We... We did it..." she panted.

"Iris!" Darren called as Professor Smith and he ran to Iris. "Are you OK!"

"Darren... Professor..." Iris said as she smiled happily at them. "We did it!"

"Yeah, we did, didn't we?" Smith chuckled. "We sure showed Ribosome!"

"We can't take all the credit," Darren admitted. "You did most of the work, Iris."

"Oh, go on," Iris said as she blushed and looked away. Just then, she remembered something. "Oh! The others! Are they all right!"

"Hey, guys," Snake Man said as he limped up to the party. "What did I miss?... Well, what do you know... Way to go, Iris!"

"Ooogh..." Sharon coughed as she approached Iris. "Looks like ya did it without any help, Iris. Nice job!... I woulda helped, but... COUGH"

X walked over to the group and smiled. "Well done, Iris," he said. "You rescued Zero and defeated the madman who was after you. If this were a hundred years earlier, you'd be a shoe-in for the Maverick Hunters."

"Oh, you guys..." Iris said, reddening even more from all the praise. "I couldn't have done it without everyone's help; X, Sharon, Snake Man, Professor Smith and you, Darren... Thank you."

"Hey, aren't you forgetting someone?" Smith asked. "Zero gave you a hand at the end, there..."

"Zero..." Iris said. "Ah! That's right!"

Everyone ran to the other side of the mech. Zero was standing in the middle of the wreckage, still looking dazed and groggy. "So, that's him, huh?" Snake Man asked. "Boy, he sure does look dangerous."

"Hmm..." Sharon said as she looked down at her own body armor. "Yep. Definitely based off of his."

Iris slowly approached the red Reploid. "...Zero?" she asked quietly.

"Zero..." Zero said in his low, solemn voice as he rubbed at his face. "Yes... that is my name... I'm Zero..." He turned and looked at Iris. "Who... Who're you?... I... I can't remember..."

"It must be hibernation sickness," X said as he came up beside Iris. "You're still pretty groggy, aren't you, Zero? Don't worry; your memories will all return soon."

Zero glared at X hard for a moment. "...Mega Man X..." he said slowly. "You're X..."

"Right," X agreed.

"...X?..." Zero said. "What... What's happened?... I don't remember much since I sealed myself away..." He looked around at the wrecked R-Alpha and the strange assortment of people in front of him. "Who... Who are all of you?..." He glanced down and looked right at Iris. His eyes widened, then he rubbed at them and looked again. "My eyes must be playing tricks on me..." he muttered. "I see Iris standing in front of me..."

"Zero," Iris said as she put her hand on his shoulder. "I AM in front of you. It's really me... "

"Iris..." Zero said as he rubbed at his face and shook his head. "You... You're alive?... But... You couldn't be... Could you?..."

"This is going to take a lot of explanation," Smith broke in. "Maybe we should get back to the museum before anything else happens."

"Yes," Iris agreed. "Let's go outside so the transporter will work..."

"Hey, guys?" Darren said as she walked around the remains of the R-Alpha. "Where's Ribosome?"

"Ribosome!" Smith exclaimed. "Oh, no, we forgot all about him!"

Smith, Iris and Sharon ran to the mech and found a large, open hatch on the side. "Dammit! He got away!..." Sharon huffed.

"Knowing him, we'll be seeing him again very soon..." Smith muttered.

"Ribo... Ughhh..." Zero groaned as he wobbled back and forth.

"Easy!" X exclaimed as he grabbed Zero. "You've had a busy day! Iris, help me out here, will you?"

Iris and X put Zero between them and, with their friends in tow, walked him out of the laboratory.


	13. The End Of The Beginning

**CHAPTER 13**

**THE END OF THE BEGINNING**

"There you go, Sharon," Professor Smith said as he sealed the last tear in Sharon's armor. "You're as good as new!"

"Are you sure?" Sharon asked. "I kinda have a pain in my left arm..."

Smith glanced at Sharon's arm, then chuckled. "Maybe it'll feel better once Snake Man gets his butt off of it," he replied.

Snake Man, who was sitting and reading a newspaper next to Sharon, looked up and sheepishly scooted off of her hand. "Sorry," he said quickly.

"Here you go!" Darren said as he cheerfully plopped Iris's beret onto her head. "All fixed!"

"Thanks, Darren," Iris answered as she happily patted her cap.

"Ahh, don't thank me," Darren chuckled. "Krein's the one who patched your armor. I just fixed the itty-bitty tear in your beret."

"Yeah," Iris answered. "...But this isn't just any old hat, Darren; it's my favorite. Again, thanks."

"Well, when you put it like that..." Darren said with a grin. "You're quite welcome!"

"Your systems should be all right now, too, Iris," Smith said as he turned to Iris, who was sitting nearby. "You can leave whenever you want."

"Thanks, Professor," Iris answered. "I think I'm going to find Zero."

"Good luck with that," Smith said. "I haven't seen him since I finished his repairs..."

"Come to think of it, I haven't heard from X, either," Sharon piped up. "I wonder where they all went?..."

"I'll see if I can find them both, then," Iris said as she smiled and walked out of the medical room. 

* * *

Zero looked out over the frosty St. Paul cityscape with calm, acknowledging eyes. "So, that's what's happened..." he said.

"Yeah," X replied. "It seems like the world has changed for the better."

"I suppose," Zero said as he glanced at the museum roof. "But still..."

The rooftop entrance opened and Iris stepped out. "Oh! There you two are," she exclaimed. "I was wondering where you went."

"Hello, Iris," X answered. "Good to see you up and about."

"Are you guys all right?" Iris asked as she approached the two Maverick Hunters. Zero turned and looked out on the city as the sun began to set.

"Professor Olson mended my armor, and Krein installed the syrum in Zero's main system," X replied. "We're as good as new!"

"I'm glad," Iris answered with a smile.

X looked at Zero, then back at Iris. "Ah... I guess I'll leave you two alone..." he excused himself as he closed the rooftop door.

Iris nervously approached Zero, who watched darkness overtake the city with his back to her. He looked just as she remembered him; he stood tall with powerful, broad shoulders and rock-hard torso under his fiery red armor. "Ummm..." she said quietly. "...H-hello, Zero..."

"Hello, Iris," Zero said as he slowly turned to Iris with his familiar blue eyes. "It's... good to see you."

"Yes..." Iris replied. "It's... really good."

"...X told me about your adventure," Zero stated. "You went through a lot for my sake. You've grown."

"Well, um, thanks," Iris said as she blushed a bit and scratched her head. "I didn't do it alone, though; my friends helped me..."

"But..." Zero said, ignoring Iris's words. "I shouldn't be here."

Iris stopped dead. "What?" she asked. "Wh-what do you mean?"

"Sigma... The Maverick Wars... You... It was all my fault," Zero said as he looked away. "The virus inside of me created all those horrible things, and millions died because of them... Now that I'm awake, those tragedies will happen again... I don't want that to happen, Iris. Not again."

"But..." Iris objected. "The syrum we built keeps that virus down! Both X and Professor Smith said so!"

"I don't care," Zero answered. "As long as I exist, so does the virus, and its potential to murder... You can't put the world in danger just to have me around, Iris."

"...But..." Iris started.

"And..." Zero said quietly. "The thought of risking hurting you again... That's too much. I won't stand for it. Please, seal me away again."

"Zero!..." Iris gasped as her eyes wavered.

"It's the only way to keep you safe," Zero pushed. "Don't forget about your friends, and the entire world to boot... It's only a matter of time before something awful happens..."

Iris just stared at Zero dumbfoundedly.

"Even a slight risk of my going berserk again is too high," Zero said as he shook his head solemnly. "I won't stand for it. Please, just put me back to sleep and forget about me..."

Iris's sad look drew into an angry frown. She walked up to Zero and brusquely slapped him across the face.

"Agh!..." Zero hissed as he clutched at the burning spot. "...I-Iris?..."

Iris's angry eyes were beginning to spill over with tears. "Dammit, Zero!..." she huffed. "When... when did you become such a big baby?!"

"...Baby?..." Zero asked.

"Back then, you fought with all your spirit!" Iris cried. "You were absolutely fearless, and you always had the world's best interests at heart! And now, you want to lock yourself away because of a slim-to-none chance?!"

"But Iris..." Zero started. "You don't understand..."

"I understand that you're afraid..." Iris said as she looked down at the ground. "You're afraid of what might happen... I was afraid too when I started on this adventure, not knowing where I was going or if I'd ever find you... I fought numerous battles against a sadistic businessman who's still after me for some reason... I learned to kill... I watched friends get hurt and die right in front of me... I even had to fight a sicko using my brother's body... Now I HAVE found you, and all you say is 'put me back!'"

"Iris..." Zero said.

"The Zero I know wouldn't whimper like this..." Iris continued. "The Zero I know would acknowledge the risk, but keep fighting for what he believed in... The Zero I know wouldn't let something like this stop him from living life to the fullest, and doing the best that he could do, and being the best that he could be!..."

There was an akward silence. A chilly breeze blew over the rooftop as the sun vanished.

"...That's the Zero I fell in love with..." Iris finished.

"Iris..." Zero whispered.

"Do you want to go back into stasis?..." Iris asked.

"No..." Zero replied. "But-"

"Then don't," Iris broke in. "You know what you want to do in life, and it isn't to hide in some cold capsule deep underground..."

Zero paused and looked away.

"Zero, the problem is that you don't trust yourself," Iris continued.

"That's kind of hard to do when you have the potential to level entire countries..." Zero grumbled.

"Will you shut up and let me finish?!" Iris snapped angrily.

Zero was so surprised that he immediately quieted.

"I know that you're afraid..." Iris said. "You don't say it, but you're afraid of this thing inside of you... But I know you, Zero. I know that you're good. You always want to do the right thing, and you wouldn't let some virus say otherwise... That's why, even after everything that's happened, I trust you."

"You... Trust me?..." Zero asked.

"Yes, I do," Iris answered. "I trust you and believe in you. So do X, and a lot of other people, even my brother... We believe that you always do what's right, regardless of circumstances... Zero, If we all trust you, can't you trust yourself?..."

"Iris..." Zero said quietly. He looked away for a moment and rubbed at his eye, then turned back. "...You really have grown," he said.

"So, please," Iris said. "Can't you at least try?..."

Zero thought for a moment. "...All right," he finally said. "I'll stay."

Iris's frown melted into a smile. "...You will?..." she asked.

Zero smiled at Iris. "After that speech, I don't think I could refuse, even if I wanted to..."

"Thanks, Zero," Iris answered with a sigh.

"We might want to, erm, take things a little slowly, to begin with..." Zero said as he fumbled with his fingers. "You know, err, if you wanted to... try this thing again..."

"Y-yeah..." Iris said as she blushed.

"So..." Zero finished. "...Now what?"

"Why don't we try this reunion again..." Iris said as she held out her arms and smiled.

"...Iris..." Zero said as he smiled widely.

"Zero..." Iris said as her eyes dribbled with happy tears.

The two Reploids met in a tender embrace in the center of the roof. "I missed you so much..." Zero whispered into Iris's ear.

"Me too..." Iris cooed as she stroked Zero's golden hair. "But that's all over now... Nobody's going to separate us ever again..."

Suddenly, Zero and Iris became aware of the sound of someone crying. "What the...?" Zero asked.

Iris suddenly blushed wildly and frowned. "Oh, boy..." she said.

Iris walked to the rooftop door and flung it open. Darren, Sharon, Snake Man, Professor Smith and X crashed out onto the snowy roof. "You guys!!!" Iris shouted.

"(SNIFF) That was so beautiful!!!..." Sharon sobbed as she dabbed at her eyes with a handkerchief. "You two are the absolute best!... (HONK)"

"Wonderful," Darren agreed. "You two go so well together, just like Iris said."

"That was so sweet," Snake Man replied. "I'm touched, really. You guys are a credit to Reploids..."

"No kidding," Smith replied. "I've never witnessed such a touching display of compassion between two Reploids. This is going to benefit my research greatly!... In addition to warming the cochles of my heart, of course."

"Wonderful," X said as he nodded to Zero and Iris. "I'm glad you guys could sort things out... It's good to see you getting along again."

"Now that the meet and greet is over," Smith said as he pulled Zero and X aside. "Lissen, we've got to talk about your fiscal duties as members of this little museum group..."

"Fiscal duties?..." Zero asked.

"Oh, no," X gulped. "We haven't been hit with a hundred years of back taxes, have we?..."

"Nahh, sillies," Smith chuckled. "We just have to wrangle you guys some jobs if you want to stick around the museum. Can't have you panhandling off of the rest of us hard-working folks, can we?"

"Errrr..." Zero grunted.

"Don't worry," Sharon laughed. "The prof's weird like that."

"Weird?!" Smith asked. "Whaddya mean 'weird?!' I'll have you know, young lady..."

Smith cheerfully crabbed on as everyone descended the steps back into the warm museum. 

* * *

Later on that evening, Professor Smith took everyone out to dinner at the Little Luna cafe. X, Zero, Iris, Darren, Sharon, Snake Man, Olson, Krein and he all sat at the counter, each happily munching on his or her own meal.

"Hey, I hear that Professor Smith got you guys jobs at the museum," Snake Man said to Zero.

"Yeah," Zero replied. "Apparently, X is now a tour guide, and I'm a security guard."

"Great!" Sharon laughed. "We'll be partners! Just between you and me, Red, 3:00 is Secret Donut Break Time!"

"Hmmph," Zero grumbled. "I don't know about this..."

"Come on, Zero," Iris said. "Give it a try; who knows? You might prefer an honest job to a dangerous one."

"Besides, you're a security guard," Smith piped up. "You still get to clobber anyone who screws with museum property."

"Well..." Zero sighed. "...I guess it wouldn't hurt to try..."

"Good," Iris said as she smiled and patted Zero's hand.

"But Zero's worries aren't misplaced," Darren said. "I mean, Ribosome's still out there, and chances are that he's plotting revenge even as we speak..."

"You read too many comic books, D," Sharon replied.

"I hate to admit it, but Darren has a point," X spoke up. "If Ribosome's anything like the enemies that Zero and I faced, he'll be back sooner or later... And he doesn't seem to care who gets hurt."

"That could be potentially dangerous," Olson answered. "If he launched an attack on you, civilians might be dragged into it..."

"And he'll probably use Mavericks again," Krein continued. "Those seem to be his weapon of choice..."

"So, you're saying that when Mavericks show up, Ribosome's sure to be nearby?..." Iris asked. "...That isn't good at all... I don't know why he's after me, but I don't want anyone else getting hurt..."

"So we'll make sure nobody does!" Darren exclaimed as he gave everyone a defiant smile. "I've got a great idea, guys!"

"What's up?" Smith asked as he chomped on a chicken leg.

"We should start our own crime-fighting operations," Darren said. "If a Maverick shows up, we'll take care of it before it can hurt anyone! We'll stand for truth and justice!..."

"...You've REALLY got to stop reading comics," Sharon sighed.

"...I like it," Iris suddenly said.

"...Iris?" Zero asked as he looked over at his friend.

"If we can stop the Mavericks before they can hurt anyone, it'll be all the better..." Iris said. "And if we're a group, we can end up making people feel safe and generally do good for the city... Yes! I'm with Darren!"

"Well, if anyone's gonna kick bad guy butt, it's gonna be me," Sharon laughed as she stood up too. "Count me in!"

"Why not?" Snake Man said with a smile. "I could use a part-time job."

"I'm always ready to protect the peace," X agreed. "I'll help in any way I can."

"I can't do much in combat," Smith said. "But I'll do my best to support the cause."

"To be thrown back into combat as soon as I awaken..." Zero sighed crossly. "It's a little irritating..."

"Zero..." Iris started.

Zero paused for a moment and took a long sip of his drink. "...But Ribosome seems adamant in continuing his war-waging," he continued. "If he isn't stopped, innocents WILL get hurt... And I'll be damned if I let that happen again." He turned to the others. "Iris, I will help. I'll protect this city, and its people... And I'll protect you, too."

"Thanks, Zero..." Iris answered with a smile.

"Whoo!" Sharon cheered. "We've got ourselves a crime-fighting superhero squad!!! Now all we need is a cool name! How about The 'Miraculous Seven?' Or the 'Justice Legion?' I know! I know! 'The Titans!'"

Everyone looked at Sharon strangely.

"...How about just 'the Maverick Hunters?'" X asked dryly.

"Heh. That works too..." Sharon chuckled. 

* * *

And so, on a sunny, chilly evening in the city of Saint Paul, Minnesota, a hundred years after their disbanding, the Maverick Hunters were officially reborn. Its seven members swore to its oath and pledged to preserve the peace and stop injustice wherever it may appear. After the ceremonies were over, the new branch celebrated by going out behind the museum and having a free-for-all snowball fight. It was a good day for the organization, although Peabody wasn't too happy about Sharon's smashing of a champaigne bottle over the museum doorway. 

* * *

While the Maverick Hunters celebrated, a lone figure paced in the President's office at CONSTRICT, INC.'s central headquarters. He paced in a calm, collected manner, even though he had just been totally humiliated by the prey he'd been trying to capture.

"This day goes to you, Iris Thorne..." Ivan Ribosome said as he continuously walked across the velvet carpeting. "Even though I had the upper hand, you managed to slip through my grasp. Well, no matter. This is just a temporary setback, my dear... One way or another, I'll get what I want... And when I finally do have it, it'll be worth that much more... I'll see you again, Iris... Very soon..."

Ribosome turned his dark eyes up at the smoggy night sky and stared for the longest time. 

* * *

Brilliantly glowing stars hung in the dark violet sky over Noonvale Apartments. At building GG, two figures stood out on the second-floor balcony and looked up at the twinkling figures.

"Beautiful..." Zero said as he stared at the stars. "I'd forgotten what they were like..."

"Well, you can see them all the time now," Iris answered. "I'm sure glad you were able to get a place here..."

"Yes, X and I were lucky that they had a lease open," Zero agreed. "What a coincidence that it would be right underneath you..."

Iris giggled. "That's good," she replied. "We can see each other any time and commute to work and all sorts of things."

"Yes..." Zero said again as he sighed and continued to look at the night sky. "I must say, they did a great job of fixing the world up since my time..."

"Yeah..." Iris answered as she looked at Zero. "It's like it was given a second chance..."

"Many things are worth a second chance..." Zero replied as he looked down at Iris. "Thanks for teaching me that, Iris..."

"Any time, Zero," Iris said. Just then, she stifled a yawn and stretched. "Oh, I'm so tired after all the excitement today..."

"We should both get some rest, I suppose," Zero answered. "Tomorrow X and I will go to the shops and pick up some furniture, but for now the carpeted floor looks very inviting..."

"OK, then," Iris said as she smiled happily. "Good night, Zero."

"Sweet dreams, Iris," Zero replied as he walked down the steps and into apartment GG102.

Iris walked inside her apartment and sat down on the couch to watch Darren make a fire in the fireplace. "Sounds like you guys are getting along well," Darren spoke up. "Well, another day down... I guess this is the end of our little adventure, huh, Iris?"

"I suppose..." Iris answered softly. "It's the end of one adventure... But... It's the start of a new one, too..."

"Yeah, I guess it is," Darren replied as he stoked the blaze. "Who knows what awaits us down the road, huh? Well, whatever's coming, I know I'll be ready. As long as I have friends like you, Iris, I feel like I can do anything." He stood up and pumped his fists excitedly. "Yeah, I'm ready for this next great adventure! How about you, Iris?... Iris?..."

Darren was answered with a snore; he turned around to see that Iris was curled up on the couch, fast asleep. She looked very peaceful and relaxed; a dreamy smile graced her unconscious face.

Darren chuckled quietly and grabbed a blanket. "Heh heh heh... Old adventures or new, some things never change..." he said as he draped the warm wool over Iris and rubbed her shoulder. "G'night, Iris..."

Darren turned the lights down, tiptoed to his room and closed the door.

**THE END**


	14. Brave Story and Credits

**MEGA MAN IRIS**

**BRAVE STORY**

**Cast Of Characters**

**Iris Thorne (Age: 100, Appearance: 16)  
**A Repliforce soldier from 21XX. Iris and the legendary Maverick Hunter Zero were dear friends until the Maverick Wars' "Repliforce Affair," when she went temporarily insane and he was forced to kill her. After being revived a hundred years later by Professor Ross Smith, Iris has decided to search the world in hopes of finding her old friends and loved ones. She carries Zero's old Z-Saber as both a weapon and a momento. Zero's sweetheart.

**Mega Man X Light (Age: 200, Appearance: 16)  
**An innovative new type of robot built by Dr. Thomas Light in 20XX. X's potential risks forced Light to seal him up for a hundred years. After X awoke, he fought bravely against Sigma in the Maverick Wars until the legendary Maverick Hunter Zero sealed himself away. X then sealed himself up as well. Awakened again another hundred years later, X has decided to help Iris find Zero in any way he can.

**Zero Omega (Age: 200, Appearance: 18)  
**A dangerous robot built by Dr. Albert Wily in 20XX to rival Light's creation, Mega Man X. Details surrounding Zero's past are unknown, but he reappeared again a hundred years later. First a Maverick, then a Maverick Hunter, Zero is always in the center of combat. Zero fought in the Maverick Wars alongside X until he realized that he was partly responsible for the war in the first place. Zero sealed himself away and hasn't been heard from since. Zero acts cold, but he has a soft spot for some of his closer friends. Iris's sweetheart.

**Sharon Doherty (Age: 4, Appearance: 18)  
**A firey-spirited martial artist Reploid. Built by Dr. Keitaro Sushi for the sole purposes of housework and servicing, she soon fled to the United States and was taken in by Professor Smith. Once meek, she became a short-tempered powerhouse who won't let anything stand in her way. After befriending Iris, she joins her on her journey.

**Darren Lucas (Age: 20, Appearance: 17)  
**A young engineer. Darren's father disowned him when he got his technical degree, so he wandered the country until Smith permanently hired him at the Science Museum, where he's been working ever since. Darren and Iris are close, so he always does everything he can to help her. Darren was once in love with Tara Slater, but doesn't like to talk about it.

**Snake Man Wily (Age: 200, Appearance: 18)  
**One of Dr. Albert Wily's Robot Masters. Snake Man fought Mega Man in 20XX and was defeated. Revived by Professor Smith and now his assistant at the museum. Wants to become an archaeologist. Snake Man also helps Iris and the Maverick Hunters when he can.

**Frost Man Wily (Age: 200, Appearance: ??)  
**One of Dr. Albert Wily's Robot Masters. Frost Man fought Mega Man in 20XX and was defeated. Revived by Dr. Otto Donnerstag and now his assistant in Tynda. Big and stupid, but otherwise friendly.

**Bubble Man Wily (Age: 200, Appearance: ??)  
**One of Dr. Albert Wily's Robot Masters. Bubble Man fought Mega Man in 20XX and was defeated. Revived by Dr.Emma Thompson and now her assistant in Cooktown. Also a friendly expert boat pilot.

**Flame Man Wily (Age: 200, Appearance: ??)  
**One of Dr. Albert Wily's Robot Masters. Flame Man fought Mega Man in 20XX and was defeated. Revived by Dr. Ali Bahai and now his assistant in Cairo. Always wears a turban.

**Professor Ross Smith (Age: 35, Appearance: 35)  
**A young, little-known robotologist working at the Science Museum of Minnesota in St. Paul. Smith worked for CONSTRICT, INC. until a potentially dangerous project made him decide to resign. After that, he devoted his life to the resurrection and study of ancient Reploids. After creating a powerful anti-Maverick Virus program, Snake Man and Iris were some of his first successful projects. His warm manner and calm temperament make him almost a father figure to Iris.

**Professor Charles Olson (Age: 42, Appearance: 42)  
**A portly and good-natured Science Museum scientist working alongside Professor Smith. Specializes in anthropology, but also has knowledge of Reploid armor and weapon systems.

**Professor Wallace Krein (Age: 40, Appearance: 40)  
**A wirey and cheerful Science Museum scientist working alongside Professor Smith. Specializes in fossil dating, but also has knowledge of Reploid health and medicine.

**Dr. Otto Donnerstag (Age: 56, Appearance: 56)  
**A rotund, jolly scientist who worked with Professor Smith to develop the anti-Maverick Virus program. Using the program, he revived Frost Man to be his assistant at his lab in Tynda.

**Dr. Emma Thompson (Age: 37, Appearance: 37)  
**An energetic, kind scientist who worked with Professor Smith to develop the anti-Maverick Virus program. Using the program, she revived Bubble Man to be her assistant at her lab in Cooktown.

**Dr. Ali Bahai (Age: 60, Appearance: 60)  
**An eccentric and cheerful scientist who worked with Professor Smith to develop the anti-Maverick Virus program. Using the program, he revived Flame Man to be his assistant at his lab in Cairo.

**Dr. Keitaro Sushi (Age: 50, Appearance: 45)  
**A shady and secretive scientist who almost never leaves his South Pacific island laboratory. Sushi only builds luscious Reploid females, but what he does with them is unspeakable. Creator of Sharon.

**Frances G. Peabody (Age: 48, Appearance: 60)  
**The grouchy and irritable curator of the Science Museum Of Minnesota. For a man in charge of a nonprofit establishment, Peabody has an uncanny obsession with money. He's constantly at odds with Smith, who insists on running all his experiments in the museum labs and as such bringing in a lot of unwanted trouble.

**Big T (Age: ??, Appearance: 20)  
**Leader of a gang of troublemaking Reploids. Uses his bulk and a huge club to harrass the St. Paul locals.

**Morph Moth (Age: ??, Appearance: ??)  
**A Maverick working for Ribosome. He uses his powerful wings and Silk Shot weapon to mercilessly attack his enemies.

**Frost Walrus (Age: ??, Appearance: ??)  
**An Ex-Repliforce soldier working for Ribosome. He uses his awesome mass and Frost Tower weapons to demolish his opponents.

**Launch Octopus (Age: ??, Appearance: ??)  
**A Maverick working for Ribosome. He viciously assassinates his enemies with his lashing Sonic Tentacles and Homing Torpedos.

**Storm Owl (Age: ??, Appearance: ??)  
**An Ex-Repliforce soldier working for Ribosome. He punishes his offenders with his feather missiles and Double Cyclone weapon.

**Armored Armadillo (Age: ??, Appearance: ??)  
**A Maverick working for Ribosome. He prefers melee combat to using his Rolling Shield weapon, so he carries a reinforced katana as well.

**Sting Chameleon (Age: ??, Appearance: ??)  
**A Maverick working for Ribosome. He taunts and tears his foes with his Chameleon Cloak and Chameleon Sting attacks.

**Tunnel Rhino (Age: ??, Appearance: ??)  
**A Maverick working for Ribosome. He tramples anyone against him with his powerful charges and his Tornado Fang weapons.

**Fighting Fefnir (Age: ??, Appearance: ??)  
**A mysterious Reploid hailing from a place called Neo Arcadia. Fefnir loves to fight more than anything and doesn't care who gets in his way. Fefnir serves humans, but in truth he loathes them above all else.

**Vile (Age: ??, Appearance: ??)  
**A Maverick working for Ribosome. Vile was Sigma's right-hand man in 21XX, and he's no different for Ribosome. An extremely sadistic and sick person, Vile will employ any tactics necessary to psych out his opponent, including taking the forms of other Reploids.

**Ivan Ribosome IV (Age: 50, Appearance: 50)  
**The CEO of CONSTRICT, INC, a multinational corporation. While CONSTRICT leads the world in the production of goods, its real products are massive weapons for armies and terrorist groups. A cold and greedy man, Ribosome will do anything to expand his corporate empire. As of late, his attentions have focused on Iris Thorne for an unknown reason.

**Colonel Thorne (Age: Deceased, Appearance: 30)  
**The short-tempered, arrogant second-in-command of the 21XX elite Reploid army Repliforce. Colonel and Zero were good friends until a misunderstanding set them at each other's throats. After much strife and combat, Colonel was finall defeated and slain by Zero, much to the horror of his sister, Iris.

**Tara Slater (Age: Deceased, Appearance: 19)  
**A classmate of Darren Lucas's. Darren and she were lovers for a brief time before she was killed by Mavericks. Not much else is known about her, but she bears an uncanny resemblance to Iris.

**Dr. Albert Wily (Age: Deceased, Appearance: 70)  
**The psychotic mastermind of 20XX. Wily is responsible for the construction of over 80 Robot Masters and the dreaded Maverick Virus. He's always looking to build a robot capable of defeating Mega Man to prove that he's the superior robot designer. Creator of Snake Man, Zero, Frost Man, Bubble Man and Flame Man.

**Dr. Thomas Light (Age: Deceased, Appearance: 70)  
**A kind-hearted and brilliant scientist of 20XX. Dr. Light developed his theories of robotics until he finally crafted several robots, one of which was the legendary Mega Man. Later on in his life, Light built Mega Man X, but was too old to live to test his creation. In 21XX, X stumbled upon the huge cache of enhancement capsules Light had left behind. Creator of Mega Man X.

**Dr. Thomas Cain (Age: Deceased, Appearance: 70)  
**A grouchy and kind scientist of 21XX. Cain was a plant archaeologist until he stumbled upon the ruins of Dr. Thomas Light's laboratory and found Mega Man X. After studying X, Cain duplicated his programs and created the Reploids. Regrettably, Cain never could find a way to stop the rampaging Maverick Virus that turned his creations into killing machines, including his finest work, Sigma.

**Sigma (Age: Deceased, Appearance: ??)  
**The Maverick overlord. Once the leader of the Maverick Hunters, Sigma became the leader of the Mavericks himself soon after his battle with a psychotic red Reploid known as Zero. Something happened between the two, and Sigma inherited the virus that Wily had built into Zero. Sigma fought X and Zero in every way he could, including changing Reploids into Mavericks, turning their friends against them or just causing general chaos.

**MEGA MAN IRIS CREDITS**

***CONCEPT***

**John Louis "ker-plop" Smith**

***CHARACTERS***

**John Louis "ker-plop" Smith**

**CAPCOM**

***DESIGN***

**John Louis "ker-plop" Smith**

**Chad Hyou**

***WRITING***

**John Louis "ker-plop" Smith**

***PUBLIC RELATIONS***

**John Louis "ker-plop" Smith**

***CHARACTER ART/DESIGN***

**CAPCOM**

**John Louis "ker-plop" Smith**

**Chad Hyou**

***MUSIC SELECTION***

**John Louis "ker-plop" Smith**

***MUSIC ARTISTS***

**CAPCOM**

**Psygnosis**

**Square Enix**

**Sega**

***SPECIAL THANKS***

**Chad Hyou**

**Steeldramon21**

**Teepeelio**

**...And those wonderful chaps at CAPCOM**

**Thanks for reading!**

**Presented by KER-PLOP**

**All Mega Man-related persons and situations are trademarks of CAPCOM and are treated as such.**


End file.
